Plan Sasuke Ino breakup!
by Rai Lockhart
Summary: Shikamaru and Sakura team up to take down Sasuke and Ino.
1. So it begins

**A/N: This has been tugging at my mind for a while now...**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, or any of the characters mentioned here. Please review! 8D**

Ino shot Sasuke her most charming smile, and he grinned back. "Are you ready for our date, Sasuke-kun?"

"Of course Ino. I've been looking forward to it all day." Sasuke was wearing a very formal outfit, and Ino had on a flattering blue dress to match her eyes. They looked as if they were going to the best restaurant in town, and they probably were. As they walked down the street, everyone commented on how lovely they looked, or how cute they were together.

"I always had hopes that he would choose you, Ino dear. I always thought you two would make a much cuter couple than tat Sakura girl would have."

"Thank you, Mrs. Sakakaki. Don't be mean to Sakura, now. She and I are still friends," Ino added kindly to the old woman. The woman just smiled, and turned back to what she was doing.

"It makes me SICK!" Sakura yelled, watching the couple walk down the street. She punched a wall, and watched as the wall crumbled beneath her fist. "They are the worst couple EVER! Saskue-kun is too good for Ino! Ino doesn't deserve him! That PIG!" She paced back and forth in her little alley between her and her neighbors house.

"I know, they are a troublesome couple," Shikamaru said bitterly from behind Sakura.

"Oh, hey Shikamaru! I didn't see you there," Sakura said sweetly, as she turned around to look at her friend. He wasn't wearing his chunnin vest, as tonight was his night off. He was gazing out of they alley, where Ino and Sasuke were still visible. They had been stopped by a few Sasuke fangirls trying to kill Ino.

"Well, my grandparents live next door to you, and they wanted to know why their walls were rumbling. So they sent me out here to investigate. And here you are: the reason the house is shaking." He looked at her. She too had a night off. Most of the chunnin were on their night off, actually. She was wearing a larger version of her old dress. They stood next to each other, both mad about Sasuke and Ino's date.

A thought hit the young medical nin. Why was Shikamaru so bitter about Ino's date with the man she loved? Did Shikamaru like SASUKE? She shuddered. Well, she couldn't tell people what to think... "So, erm, Shikamaru, why did you sound bitter about Sasuke and Ino's date?"

Shikamaru looked at her as if it was obvious. "Well, Sakura... I don't how to say this, as you two are such close friends. This is so troublesome..."

'Here it comes!' Inner Sakura screamed. 'No I've got someone else to compete for Sasuke's love with. CHAA!' Inner Sakura pumped her fists in the air, as she imagined herself beating up both Shikamaru and Ino for Sasuke.

"...I like Ino..." Shikamaru finished. Sakura's head shot up as his last words broke her from her mental images. Relief flooded over her. So she wouldn't have to fight Shikamaru for Sasuke's love. Not that Sasuke ever like a boy, anyway. Or at least, she hoped he wouldn't.

"Well then. That presents a problem both of us need to fix." Shikamaru looked at Sakura with a strange look on his face. It was the look of being totally stumped, which is a look not usually found on the tactical geniuses face. "You know, for a genius, you can sure be dumb sometimes. I mean, I want Sasuke and Ino to break up, so do you. For different reasons, of course." He nodded, now knowing where she was headed with this.

"So you are suggesting that we should work together to get Ino and Sasuke to break up... I like your way of thinking, Haruno." Shikamaru grinned, then put his brain to work. "And I've got the perfect way of doing it." He hold her his plan, and she snorted with laughter.

"Shikamaru, you obviously know nothing about love. If we could get Ino jealous that the boy she though had wrapped around her finger started dating me, the girl that she has a running rivalry with, then she might break up with Sasuke to get you back again." Sakura looked Shikamaru in the face. For a brilliant tactical ninja, he definitely needed a lesson in the more devious side of love.

"Eh... too troublesome for me, Haruno." Shikamaru stuffed his hands into his pockets. "Well, see you tomorrow. I'm bringing my little charges to see Hokage mansion sometime soon."

"Shikamaru! Wait! You want Ino just as badly as I want Sasuke. Just give it a chance. Lets go on a date the next time they do, alright? Then we can make sure they see it. I'll talk about it to Ino all week. If it doesn't work out the first time, then we can stop and go.. to your... plan." As she said the last bit, she had to hold back fits of giggles. Shikamaru's plan is what you would have expected from a tactic nin like him, but it was just so funny.

"Alright, one chance. But it better work, Haruno. I've thought up about 200 ways for this to end, and if everything goes right, it might work."

"Alright, then. If you can find out when their next date is tomorrow, we can set it up." Shikamaru nodded, and left. Sakura was left, standing alone in the alley way.

"I never knew Shikamaru's grandparents lived next door to me..."

**Hope you like it! Sorry for any OoCness, I try my hardest, you know. I'm already almost done with the second chapter! Woot! Review, please? **

**Rai Lockhart**


	2. The Date

**A/N: Sorry for any OoCness in advance. Please read and review. I want a review D: I'm trying to make as many character cameo's as possible. Enjoy! 8D**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, but if I did... 3**

A timid knock came from the door. Sakura's mother moved toward it, smiling as she opened it up. Standing outside was Sakura's date, Shikamaru. He looked very handsome in his outfit. "Come in, Shikamaru! Sakura will be down in a minute." She opened the door wide enough for him to step in, and walked toward the stairway. "SAKURA! Your date is here!"

Shikamaru stepped inside, and silently shut the door behind him. The house was tidy, everything seemed to be in it's right place. He looked around, rather nervous about their first date. It may be a fake date, but still. Who says that he can't get nervous? He heard footsteps coming from somewhere above him. He knew Sakura was coming.

And then he saw her come down the stairs. Her appearance was breath taking. She was wearing a deep jade dress, to match the color of her eyes. She had he hair parted to the right side, with a small portion going over her eye. Around her neck was a necklace with what looked like a large pink moonstone in it, and around her waist was a pink sash. She walked down the steps, and he smiled at her. She smiled back. Her mother ran out with a camera. "...Mom! You don't need to take pictures!" Sakura said, glaring at her mother.

"But it's your first date! And he is so handsome and look so beautiful! I need a picture!" Sakura rolled her eyes, and posed for a picture. "No! Cling to his arm! Like all the couples do!" So she did. It took her mother 15 minutes to stop taking pictures and telling them how cute they were. Finally, her mother's interest in the m died down a bit, and Sakura decided it was time to go.

"Shikamaru, I'm ready. And our reservation is in 20 minutes. We need to be going." Sakura pulled on his arm, and Shikamaru nodded. He opened the door, and they both walked out. They came out onto the street, and made their way up to Ino's house. They hid among the crowds, waiting for Sasuke to arrive.

"See, Sakura! Even though the Uchiha boy has chosen Ino, you've got a handsome one too! And they are both geniuses, in their respective fields. You two make an adorable couple."

"Yep, we sure do. Yep, he is a cute one." Sakura agree absent mindedly, watching the street for any sign of Sasuke. She didn't realize what she had said until she saw Shikamaru's incredulous look. It took her a second to figure out what the look was for. "Well... what was I supposed to say?!" Shikamaru just grinned, and shook his head. They returned to their waiting.

About ten minutes later, a large group of fangirls came running down the street, with a very agitated Sasuke in the middle. They were all dressed up, probably hoping to kill Ino and go on the date with him. He shook them off, and rang Ino's doorbell.

"This better work, Haruno. It better." Shikamaru watched as Ino, in a stunning black dress, walked out of the doorway.

"Time to put plan Sasuke Ino breakup into action!" Sakura started to walk away, and looked back as Shikamaru stood still. "What..?"

"That's what we are calling it? Plan Sasuke Ino breakup? No, that's not obvious at all, Sakura."

"Got a better name, shadow dork?!" Sakura said, her eyes suddenly violent.

"No, but we can name it after we follow them, forehead." Shikamaru said coolly as he flicked her in the forehead. Sakura, still fuming, followed him. They stalked behind them in the shadows, watching the couple move toward their destination.

After a few minutes, they arrived at the restaurant of choice. There were many couples here, including Neji and Tenten, who were also on a date. "Well, lets go in," Shikamaru said, starting for the door.

"What? People might see us! Us, together!"

"Oh well. We still need to watch them, and we can't outside."

"SAKURA! SHIKAMARU! Over here!" Tenten waved as she pulled Neji over. He looked like he didn't want to be here. "You two are dating? I would have never thought..! But of course, with Ino and Sasuke... Never mind that! You look so cute, Sakura!"

"Thanks, Tenten! Hello Neji." Sakura smiled at them.

"Hn." Neji nodded to her, which was the closest anyone could get to a hello from Neji. Tenten pulled him away, and said something along the lines of "Well, we've got a reservation to get to!"

"Well, come on Sakura. Troublesome as it is, we have a reservation, too." Sakura groaned.

"Alright, then. I guess people believing we go out will only help our cause." They made their way into the cozy restaurant. It was definitely romantic; couples, candles, and cuddling were everywhere.

"We have a reservation for two under the name of Nara," Shikamaru said to the host, who was turned around. As he spoke, the host turned, to reveal Shino.

"I've been wondering who your date was since we received your reservation, Shikamaru. Right this way," Shino said in his cool, deep voice. He picked up two of the fancy menu's, and walked toward a booth that was near Sasuke's and Ino's.

"Sakura-chan? You're here with him when you could be here with meee?" Naruto's blonde head came out of nowhere. He was wearing a black tux, which was the uniform for all the males, besides the cooks, who worked here.

"No, she couldn't be here with you. You're too busy with your job as bus boy to be on a date with anyone, Naruto." Kiba walked over. Shikamaru knew he was a waiter here. Naruto frowned, and walked away. Kiba grinned.

"You won't be taking our order, will you?" Kiba shook his head.

"My shift actually ended a few minutes ago. I was just curious to see who you could get to go on a date with you. She's not under a shadow bind, is she Nara?" Kiba grinned, and then looked over to Sakura. "Really, Haruno. What possessed you to go on a date with the village's self proclaimed #1 coward?"

"K-Kiba... pl-please stop harassing my c-customers." A small figure appeared from behind Kiba. Standing in her waitresses uniform was none other than Hinata Hyuuga.

"Hello, Hinata!" Sakura said, smiling. How many people that they knew worked here...? Shikamaru said nothing, but kept his eyes on their target, the couple sitting diagonally from them.

"M-May I take your dr-drink orders?" Hinata stumbled over her words as she took out her order-pad from her pocket. They both looked down at the menu.

"Tea for me," Shikamaru responded, and then looked over at Sakura.

"I'll have water, Hinata." As Hinata wrote their orders and dashed away to fill them, they put their heads close together.

"Ino has spotted us, and is coming over right now. She looks a tad bit annoyed, so watched out." Sakura nodded, then their heads moved back.

"Sakura! Shikamaru! What a coincidence!" Ino came over, smiling. She kept her attention focused mostly on Sakura. "What are you to doing here? On a date, duh..." Ino's voice trailed off, as she looked between Shikamaru and Sakura.

"Sakura! Come with me to the bathroom! NOW!" Ino grabbed Sakura's arm , and dragged her off to the bathroom. Sakura rolled her eyes as she was dragged further from her date.

"I'll be back soon, m'kay?" Sakura shouted. Shikamaru nodded, and started playing with his straw.

**What will Ino tell Sakura? Will this paln actually work?**

**Next chapter in progress!**

**Rai Lockhart**


	3. The Bathroom Explosion

**A/N: Thanks for the reviews, everyone! I'm glad you all like the story! And thanks for all the hits to the story! o.o That's mind-boggling to me!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. Sorry for any OoC-ness in advance!**

As the door to the bathroom swung open, Ino spun around to face Sakura. "What are you going here with HIM? He's MINE, Sakura!" she shouted, hands balled up into fists. Her face was turning red with anger, and the other women in the bathroom were staring in interest.

"Well, it shouldn't matter to you. You have Sasuke. You don't need both," Sakura said coolly, knowing it would tick Ino off even more. And it did. Ino looked as if she was about to explode.

"YOU DO NOT NEED SHIKAMARU! ARG!" Ino's forehead vein was pulsing dangerously again. As the two bickered and argued back and forth, Tenten laughed, but neither of them heard.. She had been standing in the corner since the fight began.

"This should be juicy gossip. Ino and Sakura: Fighting over Shikamaru," She said to herself, and made her way to the door. As she passed the other two ninja, she smiled. "You two better be getting back to your dates before they start to wonder. Unless they haven't already heard you. These bathrooms aren't soundproof, you know." And with that, she left. The door swung back to the closed position. Ino and Sakura had stopped arguing, and had turned to face each other.

"What if they did hear?" They said in unison. They both tried to run through the door at the same time. "Let me out first, forehead!" "No, me first, pig!" "Billboard brow!" "Boar!" Their shoulders were rubbing against each other as they tried to make their way out. Sakura made her way out first, and turned to stick her tongue out at Ino. They collided, and fell backwards.

"Oww! Why were you stopping, Sakura?" Ino rubbed her nose, and stood up. She extended a hand to help her rival.

"Why did you move forward, Ino?" Sakura rubbed her forehead, and took Ino's hand. "I guess rivals can be friends."

"Shikamaru's still mine. Dump him."

"Never."

"Arg! You... AH!" Ino looked at her with a frustrated face. They split to go back to their different dates.

"So, Ino is jealous?"

"You heard?"

"Every word, Haruno. Every word."

"Tenten was right; those aren't sound proof." Sakura turned to look back over at the other couples. She just now noticed their drinks had arrived. She took a long sip, and then looked back over at the menu.

"N-now that Sakura i-is back, may I t-take your or-order?" Hinata took back out her order pad, and looked at the couple.

"I'll have some anko dumplings and a side salad." Sakura handed the menu over to Hinata, who wrote down her order and turned to Shikamaru.

"A-and for you, sir?"

"You don't have to call me sir, Hinata. Shikamaru will do just fine. I'll have the ---" His sentence was cut off by a loud boom at the front entrance. Sakura up and immediately saw Shikamaru with his head turned.

_'Wow, he looks gorgeous...' _she thought, but immediately shook her head to rid herself of such thoughts. "I'm supposed to like Sasuke, remember?" she said aloud.

"Yes, I do. Why do you think I can't remember, Sakura?" Shikamaru looked at her quizzically as she started to turn red from blushing.

"Uh, no reason..." Luckily, he didn't notice her blush. He was too busy looking at the source of the commotion.

"I'll do it later, Shizune!" Tsunade came around the corner, running through the restaurant. Shizune was close behind, clutching a handful of paperwork.

"YOU WILL NOT!"

"Hokage-sama, you are going to need to pay for hat broken wall. Why didn't you just use the door?" Shino's voice carried across the room.

"I'll pay for it later, Shino!" Tsunade yelled, still trying to get away from Shizune.

"You will not!" Sakura and Shizune yelled together. Tsunade and Shizune stopped, then turned to face the pink haired ninja. Sakura was standing up now, pointing at Tsunade.

"You'll never pay for the door, and you know it! You've got other debts to pay before that one!"

"Eh... this is troublesome." Shikamaru had his head propped on his hand, looking between Sakura, Tsunade, and Shizune.

Tsunade looked between Shikamaru and Sakura. "You two are on a DATE? Sakura! How lovely. And you chose a good one two. Not Naruto..."

"HEY! I don't like you saying that!" Naruto came up from no where again, glaring at Tsunade.

"I don't appreciate you talking to your Hokage like that! Bow down before me!"

"NEVER!" came the reply.

Shikamaru leaned across that table. "Ino and Sasuke are leaving. Let's follow them, okay?"

"Alright, Shika-kun." Sakura got up, with Shikamaru following. _'Shika-kun? Since when do I call him Shika-kun...?'_

_'Shika-kun? Who calls me Shika-kun..?' _He shook his head as they moved from their booth.

"H-hold on! D-do you not w-want your fo-food?"

"No, just charge it to Hokage-sama," Sakura responded. Tsunade and Naruto were still arguing, and Shizune was trying to break up the fight. None of them noticed Sakura just added more onto Tsunade's humongous debt.

"O-okay. Bye, Sakura and Shikamaru!" Hinata smiled and waved, as she was supposed too. The couple left, still stalking Ino and Sasuke.

"Sasuke, where should we go next?" Ino asked, giving him a charming smile.

"Sorry, Ino. But I've got to get back now... We can set up our next date later," Sasuke replied in his cool, collected voice. And then he did the worst thing for Sakura to see: he leaned in to kiss Ino, right in her line of vision. Sakura almost died, she turned to run away, but ran into Shikamaru.

She didn't move. She just stood there, crying into his shirt. He put his arm around her. "Sakura... it's okay. It's only a kiss." He wanted to say something about kisses being troublesome, but he was feeling as much pain seeing Ino get kissed. But as he held Sakura, some of the pain dissapeared.

"No, it's not! It NEVER will be!" At the sound of her voice, Sasuke broke off his kiss with Ino to turn around and look at her.

"Did you two follow us here?" He questioned, choosing not to look at Sakura.

"I HATE YOU!" she screamed in response, pulling away from Shikamaru to turn and face him. Then she took off down the street. Shikamaru mumbled something about troublesome crying, then took off after her.

Sasuke glared at Ino. "Damnit, Yamanaka! I thought you said that dating you would make Sakura jealous! How am I supposed to go out with her if she hates me?" Ino looked downward.

**A/N: What does this mean? Ino and Sasuke were planning, too? Stay tuned!**

**As always, review! ILU all.**

**Rai Lockhart**


	4. Ino's notes

**A/N: Well, here I am again! 505 hits in under a week! THANKYOU SO MUCH! And while your at it, check out my friend Lorna Dune's story. It's amazing. :3**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters mentioned in this story. You all should know that by now... Sorry for any OoCness! OH YEAH! The bold italicized parts are memories, and the regular italicized parts are thoughts.**

Sakura ran down the street, tears flowing freely now. Her plan was supposed to work, it really was! And all she got was more pain. By now, she had run out to one of the training fields. She sat down against a tree, and just cried. She didn't know anyone else was there.

"Sakura, I'm sorry. We should have just stayed in the café, no matter how troublesome it was." Shikamaru's voice carried over the open field as he came into her view. He sat down next to her, and smiled.

"I'm glad you're here, I really am," Sakura said through her tears, that were slowly stopping. She was hugging her knees, and she smiled at him. Shikamaru leaned back onto the ground, and looked up at the sky.

"The clouds are so nice at this time of night. So free... Here, join me Sakura." He patted the ground next to him. She had stopped crying by now, even though she was still depressed, and leaned back next to him.

"I always wondered why you liked looking at clouds Shikamaru. Now I know. They make you feel calm inside."

"Mhmm." After a few minutes of watching the clouds, Shikamaru got halfway up and propped his body up with his arms. Are you feeling better, Sakura?" He asked, looking down at her.

She moved into the same position, and smiled at him. "Much better. Thank you Shikamaru. I owe you one." She sniffed a bit, and then looked up at the stars. "They are so pretty."

"Yeah, they are." Shikamaru stood up, brushed himself off, and them offered her a hand. "I'll walk you home. A woman shouldn't be out alone, you know."

Sakura grinned, and took his hand. "Are you sure it's not too troublesome, Shikamaru?"

"Positive. Although if we wait any longer, I might think it over and decide it is." He pulled her up. They walked out of the field together, pointing at starts and laughing.

_**"I HATE YOU!" **_

Sasuke opened his eyes. Sakura's words had haunted his dreams. He got out of bed, and looked out the window. It was a sunny day in Konoha; children were playing outside, people were training, and Naruto was coming up the walkway.

Wait... NARUTO was coming up HIS walkway?! Sasuke quickly changed into his clothes. He had showered last night, so that wasn't a problem.

"SASUKE" Naruto's voice called. "Are you home?"

_'What a dumb question, like I'm going to answer.'_

"I know you're in there! Hinata said she saw you when I asked here where you were!"

_'Damn Byakugan. Note to self: convince Hinata never to talk to Naruto about me, or kill her.'_

**_"I HATE YOU!"_** There it was again...

"Sasuke! You have a note on your door! You should come down and get it!"

"A note?..." he mumbled to himself. He ran down the stairs, threw open the door, grabbed the note from Naruto's hands, and slammed the door shut.

_'Sasuke, I know you don't want to see me right now._

_But I have an idea. Look, I'm sorry. I had no idea Sakura still liked you. From what you said, she didn't. Meet you at the ramen stand at 11:30?_

_Your's truly, Ino Yamanaka.'_

Sasuke groaned; she was right. The last person he wanted to see right now was Ino. Actually, it was Naruto, but Ino was pretty far down on his list. He glanced at the clock. It was 11:20 right now.

"SASUKE!" Naruto's voice carried loudly through the thin piece of wood. Sasuke opened the door, and ran out.

"Bye, loser." Sasuke shot past him, heading for the stand. Because it was such a nice day, almost everyone was out.

"SASUKE! My youthful friend! How has this fine day of training been?" Sasuke knew who that voice belonged to. Rock Lee came running up to him, Gai sensi close behind.

"I'm fine, Lee."

"Sasuke, where is my eternal rival, your sensi Kakashi? Who, by the way, just lost to me in a dancing contest last night while he was sleeping. I snuck in and challenged him.."

Sasuke wasn't really paying attention, but Guy was getting all the attention he needed. Lee was hanging on to his every word, occasionally throwing in a "Yes, Gai sensi!" or "Way to go!" He slowly left their little circle and moved toward the ramen stand. Ino was sitting in there, crying and talking to the waitress.

"... It's not like I wanted him to hate me. But he does, and it's all my fault!" Sasuke knew who she was talking about.

"Look, Ino, I'm sure he doesn't hate you..." The waitress looked as if she wanted to get away. So did he, for that matter.

"Look, Ino. I don't hate you."

"Not you, Sasuke." Ino was still puffy eyed. "Shikamaru. Remember the reason we started this? Huh?" He did, actually.

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_**Sasuke watched Sakura come back from another mission with Shino Aburame. He shoved his hands into his pockets.**_

_**"It's sickening, isn't it Sasuke-kun?" He turned to see Ino, standing behind him. Shikamaru was on that mission, too. They had come from the Sand village, and Temari returned with him.**_

_**"Yes. It is."**_

_**"We should do something about it. I don't want Shika-kun to get his heart broken by the sand slut over there."**_

_**"I don't give a damn about the Nara kid."**_

_**"I know you don't. But I can help you get Sakura." There was a long pause, as if Sasuke was contemplating what she had said. He took a deep breath, and stole another glance at Sakura and Shino.**_

_**"How?" She leaned closer to his ear, and whispered her plan.**_

_**"Jealousy is a powerful emotion, Sasuke"**_

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"Ino, I'm sure Shikamaru doesn't hate you... the only person who hates anyone is Sakura. And she only hates me."

"That's what you think, Sasuke." She thrust a crumpled up piece of paper with many tears stains on it at him.

"What's this, Ino?" Sasuke didn't want to look at it, fearing it might be a letter from Sakura saying that Shikamaru and her were eloping.

"Read it, dummy." He slowly started to uncrumple the paper that was given to him. As it became straighter, Sasuke realized that this was not written in Sakura's handwriting.

It was in Shikamaru's. He read over the letter. It started out with these words:

_"This is troublesome to write, Ino. Especially to you."_

'How predictable.' Sasuke continued reading, having trouble where Ino's tears had landed.

"Ino... I'm... wow. I didn't know you two had a fight after he brought Sakura home."

"That's what I needed to talk to you about." Ino's voice was getting stronger and more confident. "I will not lose Shikamaru to Sakura! NEVER! So, Sasuke, I need you to help me. Will you continue our plan, just for a little bit longer?"

He thought it over. What did he have to lose? Sakura already hated him as it was, and leaving them alone wouldn't get them separated any faster.

"Alright. I will." Ino stuck out her hand, as if to seal their fate. He took it, and they shook on it. Ino's tears had gone by now, and she was looking confident.

"Good. Now lets discuss what we need to do. I was thinking..."

**A/N: Hope you enjoyed it! Chapter five is coming soon. REVIEW, Please? Tell me if you'd like to see something happen, like more humor/drama, or Naruto kiss Hinata/something involving supporting characters. If it's a big enough idea, I'll name the chapter it's in in your honor! I promise. So review and give idea's!**

**Rai Lockhart**


	5. Sasuke's Mind

**A/N: Thanks for all the ideas everyone! Keep 'em coming! Also, thanks for the hits. I'm freakin' amazed at how well this story is doing.**

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT own Naruto. In the story, there are parts where there are bold italic words. Those are two different parts of the same characters mind. So, it's not like there is someone who can read minds.**

"SAKURA! I need you in here, pronto! These papers need to be organized better so I can, um... Just do it!" Tsunade's voice boomed through the walls to where Sakura was sitting, reading over previous medical files. These various diseases and problems interested her; it was one of her favorite pastimes to read them.

"Coming, Tsunade-sama." Sakura placed the files back in their drawers, and walked over to the Hokage's office, humming the entire way.

"Good morning, Sakura," Tenten's voice came from behind.

"Oh! Hello, Tenten. I was just going to help Tsunade-sama avoid doing paperwork. If you'd like, you can come with me. It's better to have company than to do it alone." Tenten nodded, and they both entered the office.

Standing in the middle of the room, right in front of the desk, was none other than Sasuke. Sakura's smiling face suddenly went cold and hard. She looked angry, and her eyes were narrow, and filled with hate. She walked right over to the paperwork, without even so much of a glance toward her used-to-be crush.

"Ah, Tenten! It's a good thing you came! I need you to go gather a team to leave right away. Mr .Uchiha here was just telling me about two ninja that had been spotted out near where the most recent Akatasuki activity was supposed to be. It's rumored that Orochimaru has been following them around, and I need a three man team. I was just thinking that this would be a perfect reunion mission for Team Guy." Tenten bowed, than left to go find her teammates. Tsunade looked down at her desk, and noticing a stack of paperwork had gone missing, looked over at Sakura.

"Good. I need you to sift through those for high paying missions that only require Chuunin or a three man Genin team."

"Tsunade-sama, you need to do this! I'm not Hokage, I'm not supposed to be filling out your paperwork."

"Sakura, Sakura. You forget that I am the one who controls what nights you get off. And if you don't help me, I am liable to take away a certain night that you were planning on having off."

"But Tsunade-sama! I..."

"I don't want to hear it. I will take it away if you don't. Uchiha here can help."

"I can do it myself, thank you," Sakura's voice was cold and stiff. She was glaring at Sasuke.

"And Uchiha can help. He was supposed to be helping you today, anyway."

"Yes Tsunade-sama," Sasuke and Sakura said together. Tsunade nodded, and then left. She had a good day of drinking to do. And Shizune wasn't here to say anything.

Sakura split the stack into two parts. "You take that half, I'll take this one. The only time you are to talk to me is if you have a serious problem with deciding if they are worthy of attention. Got that, Uchiha?"

"Sakura, look. I'm sorry..."

"GOT THAT, UCHIHA?" Sakura's voice had risen to a full blown yell now.

Sasuke sighed and rolled his eyes. "Yes, Miss Haruno. I mean, Mrs. _Nara_."

One death glare from Sakura was all it took to shut him up. Sasuke rolled his eyes again, and got to work.

The paperwork was so boring, and Sakura was going through it like water. She was a stamping machine, going over each one so fast that it was impossible for Sasuke to keep up. She glanced over at him. He wasn't doing anything, just staring at her with a dumb look on his face.

"I would appreciate it if you did your work, Sasuke." Sakura's voice was still cold, but she seemed a little nicer this time. They both began to work again. It was tiring, boring, and Sasuke had three paper cuts.

Their work was interrupted by a small knock.

"You wanted to see me, Hokage-sama?" Shikamaru's voice carried into the room.

"Tsunade's not here, Shikamaru," Sakura responded.

"Can I still come in? It's too troublesome to go back home. My mother's cleaning today..."

"Sure! I'm doing paperwork, so I don't know if you'll have fun." Sakura was smiling now. Sasuke noticed how her voice became much lighter when she heard Shikamaru's voice. "Oh, and Uchiha's here."

_'Since when did Sakura call me Uchiha? She has definitely been hanging around Shikamaru too much.' _

The door opened, and Shikamaru stepped in. "Uchiha? How troublesome." Sasuke shot Shikamaru one of his best death glares, but it did nothing. Shikamaru just stuffed his hands in his pockets, and walked over to where Sakura was stationed. He sat down next to her.

"We still on with Naruto and Hinata tomorrow? I can't believe he's actually going out with her... I think she drugged him."

_'Hmm... Shikamaru and Sakura are double dating with Naruto and Hinata. I never did like Hinata... She was so shy and stuttery. And she liked Naruto. There are tons of better looking people in this village, like Neji... Well, not her cousin. But there's Shika-- no, he's a dumbass. And Kiba's got flea's and Chouji is huge. Shino is just weird, and Lee is... Lee. I guess she picked the best one.'_

_'**But she should have picked you.' **_Another part of Sasuke thought. _'No! Not everyone should like me!' _He thought back to himself.

_'**But it would be nice... She's so much hotter than Sakura, anyway.' **'NO!' '**YES! Goooo for Hinata' **'NO! I LIKE Sakura!' '**Shikamaru has Sakura now. Goooo for Hinata...' **'NOOO!' '**Dooo eet!'**_

As Sasuke argued with himself, Sakura finished up her paperwork. Shikamaru and Sakura were carring on a conversation of their own.

"So, where do you want to go for lunch? Once I finish this paperwork, I'm free for another two hours."

"I don't know. It's too troublesome for me to pick."

"I hear Ichiraku Ramen stand is having a couples special today. Ayame was advertising last night."

"That's good. I guess I'll pay. It's not right for..."

"I know! It's not right for a woman to pay for herself. Bah! But if you're offering, Shikamaru..." Sakura winked. Sasuke stopped talking to himself to roll his eyes at her, and then go back to arguing about Hinata.

_'**Her shyness is SEXY!' **'Noooo!' '**Yes!' **NOOOO!'_

"Well, I'm done. Bye, Sasuke. Shikamaru and I are leaving. Sasuke...?" Sakura walked over to the teenager who was staring at the stack not moving. He looed like he was concentraing deeply on something or another. "Alrighty then. Let's go, Shika-kun."

_'**And she has the Bya--- SHIKA-KUN?' **_Sakura's last words seemed to hit Sasuke like a pile of bricks. Shika-kun? How disgusting. Now he had a reason to help Ino: To stop Sakura from calling it Shika-kun.

"Bye, Uchiha," Shikamaru said as they both walked out the door. Sasuke was still sitting there, ranting in his head about Sakura and Shikamaru.

A few minutes later, the couple was walking down the street. "It's so nice to get out of that office. I couldn't stand having Sasuke in there after what happened..." Sakura's voice trailed off as her eyes teared up again.

"Don't think of that night, Sakura. What they did... it hurt both of us. So it's better to forget it to the best of our ability."

"You're right, Shikamaru. I'll try my hardest."

"Ah, here we are." They had arrived at the ramen stand. It looked as if everyone in the town was here eating. Or at least, Naruto and Hinata.

"Nar-Naruto-kun..."

"This is delicious! Are you going to eat your bowl, Hinata?"

"N-n-no..." She pushed the bowl of ramne toward Naruto and smiled feebly.

As he scarfed down his next bowl, he turned to Hinata. His mouth was still full of ramen, and he was grinning, "You should definatley try some of this, Hinata," he said with a mouth full of the stuff.

"You idiot, you just took her bowl." Sakura hit Naruto in the back of the head, causing him to spit out the ramen.

"Awww, Sakura-chan! You made me spit out my ramen!"

"You mean Hinata's ramen, idiot!" Sakura hit him again, harder this time.

"Hello, Hinata." Shikamaru walked over to Naruto's accomplace while Saukra and Naruto bickered.

"Oh, he-hello Shikamaru-kun." Hinata looked up at him, and then over at Naruto again. "W-what are you d-doing here today?"

"Well, we were going to eat, but I think Naruto might have taken all of the ramen. Let me guess: He dragged you here to take advantage of the Couples Special?"

"Yes." She looked back over at him. "B-but I wanted to c-come with him, anyway."

"Sakura-chan!" Naruto was frowning. "Why are you here with him," He jabbed a thumb in Shikamaru's direction, "when you could be here with meeee?"

"Because you're here with Hinata, baka!" Sakura yelled at him as she hit him yet again. Shikamaru walked over by Sakura and grabbed her arm.

"Before you hit Naruto again and tell him he's an idiot, which I sure he knows by now, lets get something to eat." He sat down next to Naruto, and had Sakura sit down on the other side of him, so the two teamamtes were seperated. Naruto shot Shikamaru a grateful look.

"Hello, Hinata! I didn't see you there. How are you?" Sakura smilied down towards the shy Hyuuga.

"F-fine, Sakura. A-and yourself?"

"I'm doing fine, thank you! And," she said, turning to Ayame, "I would like some diet ramen and a water." Ayame nodded and turned to Shikamaru.

"May I take your order?"

"Just a bowl of beef ramen and a water, please," Shikamaru replied to the waitress. She nodded again, and turned to her father.

"Your order will be out in a bit," He said, and got back to work.

By now, Naruto an d Hinata had left the stand, and were heading toward where Tsunade was supposed to be.

"She's not there; the only person in her office is Sasuke," Shikamaru yelled to Naruto.

"That's fine! I wanted to talk to him about that note Ino put on his door, anyway," Naruto yelled back at the two.

Sakura turned to face Shikamaru. "Ino left Sasuke a note?"

"I guess so. Although, our information did come from Naruto. It might be foolish to trust it."

Sakura looked back down at her ramen. "Lets just say for a moment we did believe Naruto. What do you think the note would have said?"

Shikamaru sat in thought for a little bit, and then turned to her. "It would probably have something to do with you and me."

"Hmm... I wonder..." Sakura's green eye's flashed dangerously. "Well, anyway. I've got to get back. Bye, Shikamaru! See you tomorrow night!"

**A/N: New chapter up soon, I hope. I have a really funny scene that's been stuck in my head for a while now, so I'm goning to put it in.**

**Review, please! And keep the ideas coming. :3**


	6. Plant Ninja's!

**A/N: Sorry it took so long to update! I would have sooner, but fanfiction was having problems with me. D: So, here it is. Hope you enjoy! Review, please.**

**Disclaimer: I Do Not own Naruto, or any of the characters mentioned here.**

Sasuke grinned. Today was his day; He was going to get Hinata, one way or another. Naruto couldn't hold up to his strenght. He made his way to the ramen stand, where Naruto and Hinata were yet again sitting, eating.

"NARUTO! I challenge you to a fight! A fight for your girlfriend!" Sasuke yelled, pointing a finger at his rivial. He groaned inwardly; he had just sounded like Lee.

Naruto's eyebrows shot up. "What? My girlfriend? I HAVE A GIRLFRIEND?" Naruto temporarily forgot his ramen and looked at Sasuke. "Is she pretty?"

"You know who I'm talking about, baka! Let us fight for her!"

"I'm not a baka, you baka!"

"Super baka!" Sasuke yelled.

"I'm not a super baka, you super baka!"

"I forgot! You aren't a super baka..." Sasuke started, but was intterupted by Naruto.

"That's right, Sasuke!"

"... You're a super clumsy baka!" Sasuke said, sticking his tounge out.

"I am not! Sasuke, I challenge you to a fight!"

"I accept!"

The two teammates moved out into the open, and faced each other.

"For Hinata!" Sasuke yelled as he made his first move. Hinata blushed, and moved out into the open.

"Sas-Sasuke-kun..." Hinata said feebly.

"Yes, Hinata-chan?" Sasuke said, dodging an attack from Naruto.

"I-I don't l-like you..." She said, pushing her index fingers together.

"WHAT?" he yelled, right as Naruto hit him with the Rasengan.

"Never call me a super clumsy baka!" Naruto finished. Sasuke lay on the ground, staring up at the sky. He was in shock. Not only that Naruto beat him, but that Hinata didn't like him.

_'She hates me! Why? I mean, come on! I'M BRINGIN' SEXY BACK!' _Sasuke pouted in his mind, lying in front of the ramen stand. There were many passerbys staring at the Uchiha survivor as if he were mad. Naruto was finishing up his ramen, with Hinata by his side. She kept nervously glancing back at Sasuke, as if he would attack at any second.

Soon, Naruto and Hinata left to go about their buisness. Sasuke just laid there, presumably asleep. He was awoken six hours later by a loud, annoyed voice.

"SASKUE UCHIHA! You're not ready? We're supposed to be following Shikamaru today! And your all dusty! Get up, I'll dust you off, and we'll leave." Ino rolled her eyes. She pulled Sasuke up, and dusted him off. Sasuke just stood there, motionless.

"Ino, am I loosing my sexyness?" Sasuke asked.

"Lets go, Sasuke. We need to get to the resturant," Ino said, carefully avoiding the question. They moved along the street, making their way to another popular couples resturant.

"They have waayyy too many of these troublesome couples resturants in this village," Shikamaru commented as he and Sakura walked through the front door. It was full, except for one or two tables. Sakura walked up to the hostess, and smiled.

"Reservation for two, under Haruno." The hostess nodded, and brought them to a small, two person table. They sat down, and started looking over the menu.

Ino and Sasuke also walked in the front door. "Please tell me you made reservations, Ino."

"That was YOUR job this time, Sasuke!" Ino said, her eye twitching.

"...Oops." He flinched as his date turned, and smacked him on the back of the head.

"BAKA!" Ino glared at him, then turned to look about the room. Her mind was working fast, trying to find out where to go. She spotted a rather large plant near a wall that could conceal both her and Sasuke. She grabbed him, and pulled him over to it.

"Ow! Wher eare you taking me, Ino?"

"Shut up and follow me!" She dived down, landing behind the plant with a certian grace. Sasuke, on the other hand, did not have such luck. He smacked his head into te wall.

"OW."

"SHUT UP!" Ino glared at him again, and then turned her attention to her rival. She parted the plant just enought so she could see out. They sat there, watching Sakura and Shikamaru talk and enjoy themselves.

"Ew, that pig! She's ordering a salad without fat free dressing! And it's got steak bits on it! She's going to be HUGE." Ino scoffed as Sakura's food came out.

"Whatcha two doin' back here?" A familiar voice came from beind them. Sasuke and Ino froze, their eyes simultaniously twitching.

"N-Naruto-kun, I-i think we should l-leave them alone..."

"Nonsense, Hinata-chan! If they can hide behind the plant, we can too!"

"Shut up Naruto! You'll blow our cover," an agitated Sasuke added.

"So, what is it that we are all back here for?" Kiba had apperently joined the group.

"H-Hello, Kiba-k-kun."

"It was your destiny to be found here, Uchiha."

"SHUT UP, NEJI! I HATE YOU." Sasuke turned to glare at the newcomer, Neji.

"Sasuke! Do not dare to talk to my youthful friend like that!"

"Shut up, LEE!" Tenten, Neji and Ino said at the same time. Ino and Sasuke had completely forgot about what they were doing in the first place. A loud muching now drifted from the back of the group.

"Ino, why are you watching Shikamaru?" Chouji chomped another bag of chips.

"CHOUJI! Do you ever stop eating?" Ino tried to look at him, but there were so many people now, she couldn't see him. They were all talking so loud, Ino couldn't hear what was going on with Shikamaru and Sakura. Which was probably a good thing. Their cover was completely blown.

"Don't look now, Sakura, but Ino, Sasuke, and a lot of other people are trying to watch us from behind that tree."

"I know, I can hear them." Sakura replied. They both laughed, and turned back to their meal.

Ino's plan had been foiled. "I WILL GET YOU SAKURA!" She shouted, as the resturant secrutiy took her away from her hiding place. "And I would have, too! If it wasn't for those ninja and Kiba's darn dog!"

"Bark bark!" Akamaru added.

**A/N: So, hope you enjoyed! Another chapter coming soon, I hope. So, review, PLEASE? Rai**


	7. Kakashi's plan

**A/N: GACK! Stupid school has been occuping my time for so long, I've been writing it one sentence at a time. I just got enough time to finish it the other day. Hope you enjoy! **

**Disclaimer: I Do Not own Naruto, or any of the characters mentioned here.**

Shikamaru looked at Sakura. She looked beautiful.

Sakura started back, her eyes soft in a loving way.

His palms were starting to sweat.

It felt as if there were thousands of butterflies in her stomach.

She leaned forward, and closed her eyes. He leaned toward her, and their lips met. And held. For a while. To the people watching, the kiss lasted no longer than it took them to raise an eyebrow. To Shikamaru and Sakura, the kiss seemed to last forever.

As they broke away, a loud noise came from the crowd. "SAKURA HARUNO! WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING TO HIM?!" Ino's loud, bossy voice boomed into the ears of everyone in the surrounding villages. Ino was in a mad furry, bounding up to her best friend. She pulled back her hand, about to slap her. As her hand moved towards Sakura's face, Shikamaru stepped in the way.

Ino's hand landed on his face. It left a red mark on his face, and it looked as if it stung him. He closed his eyes in pain, but did not back away. "I would like to remind you, Ino , that you have no say over what I do." Shikamaru's teeth were clenched. Ino had a surprised look on her face. She pulled her hand back, and frowned.

"That's what you think, Shikamaru Nara. I know where you sleep. I know where your girlfriend sleeps. I know where your best friend sleeps. I know where your parents, grandparents, enemies, deer, friends, dan..."

"We get it, pig. You are a creepy stalker." Sakura's pink head appeared from behind Shikamaru's arm. She was sticking her tongue out at her friend. "Lets go, Shika-kun." The couple walked off together, leaving Ino in a crowd of weird, stalker people. They were piled around her, trying to get help on their various stalker needs.

"Hey, HEY! Ino, can I get some info on that Uchiha kid?"

"I want to know where Sakura sleeps!"

"I'm having trouble with this one dude who seems to be able to evade anything I throw at him. Help?"

"I think I love you..."

Two hours later, Ino was still stuck in the middle of a crowd. And for once, she didn't want to be the center of attention. But he savior was near. A distressed Uchiha appeared for her help, drawing most of the attention to himself. Ino quickly fled the circle, and Sasuke followed.

"Ino, we need to talk. There's rumors going around that Shikamaru and Sakura are going out." Sasuke was glaring at her.

"It's not a rumor..."

"GOOD! Then we won't have to worry about it!"

"They are going out..." Ino's face turned downcast. She was really regretting her plan now.

"WHAT!" Sasuke grabbed Her shoulders. "You said this was going to work!"

"Yeah, well, you haven't been doing a good job of keeping them apart. Go flirt with the girl!" Ino's eyes were ablaze. She was giving Sasuke her death glare, and he glared back. They went on for about ten minutes, until a voice stopped their contest.

"Are you two really that pathetic?" The couple spun around, looking for the source of the voice. It was none other than the man with a plan, Kakashi.

"Errrr... Hello, Kakashi-sensi," Ino quickly dropped her gaze as a large sweat drop rolled down her face. She grinned uneasily, and put her hand on the back of her head. '

"What do you want..." Sasuke folded his arms, and looked at his sensi. He was not in the mood for a lecture.

Kakashi looked down at his student. "Well, I was just going to offer a piece of advice, but I guess you don't want it."

"Bah, we don't need..." But Sasuke was cut off by Ino.

"YES! Yes, tell us your advice, Kakashi-sensi!" She rushed in front of Sasuke, and put on her best puppy dog pout. "Please tell us, Kakshi-sensi. Sasuke didn't know what he was talking about..."

Sasuke's eye started to twitch, as though he was about to tell Ino off. But he did not say a word to her. He kept his mouth shut. Kakashi eyed him, then moved on with his plan.

"One of you has the ability to control other people's minds. Why don't you take over Sakura, and then kiss in front of Shikamaru? That would solve your problem."

"That's BRILLIANT! But.. umm... Kakashi-sensi... May I ask you one question?" Ino looked up at him.

"Other than the one you just asked, sure."

"Why are you helping us?" Sasuke asked for Ino.

"Because, I have a bet with Tsunade about Shikamaru and Sakura. I think they won't last, and she thinks they will. And I don't want to loose 10,000 yen to the worst gambler ever."

"Okay then. Thank-you." Kakashi waled away, and Ino looked back at Sasuke. "We have a new plan now. If you screw this up, I'll kill your fish."

"I won't if you--- NOT MR. SCALEZ!" Sasuke suddenly looked like a three year old who was in risk of loosing a teddy. He ran up to Ino. "Mr. Scalez is a treasured family... err... heirloom! Kill him, and I know someone who will find and kill you."

Ino rolled her eyes. "It doesn't matter, Sasuke. We've got a great plan now. And if Kakashi-sensi loses his bet, he'll come and kill you. And your stupid little fish." She gave him one last look, and walked off. It was weird how spending so much time with Sasuke was driving her up the wall. And how she was so jealous of Sakura spending so much time with Shikamaru when just a few years back, she would have given anything to switch genin teams.

Sasuke ran back to his apartment. He was worried about a certain someone. He dashed through the door, and over to his desk. He let out a sigh of relief. His fish was still there.

"Mr. Scalez, we're going to be together forever."

**A/N: Everyone loves Sasuke's fish. xD Remember to review, please!**


	8. Dinner Disaster

**A/N: Sorry for taking so long on the update! I've been insanely busy, with exams and stuff. o.o; So, I hope you enjoy! Like always, Read and review!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.  
**

"I expect this bet to work in my favor. You are to watch Kakashi, and make sure he makes no contact with Ino. This is enough to pay off my debt to Jiraiya." Tsunade turned to face the jounin she had contacted. She was desperate, and this was the only person who wouldn't look suspicious following Kakashi everywhere.

"If Gai is on the job, you know it will be done well! I will never lose to Kakashi!" A thumbs up was given, and Tsunade could have thought she heard the 'ping' of sunlight hitting his teeth. She sighed. She really was desperate to win this bet. With a flick of her hand, Tsunade dismissed him. She turned to the other person in the room. He was also wearing a green jumpsuit.

"As for you, Lee, I'm expecting you to follow Sasuke Uchiha around. Don't let him out of your sight." Lee nodded, and vanished. Tsunade sat in her chair, and looked out at her village. It was a sad day for her when she needed to use her ninja to keep Kakashi quiet. Sighing yet again, she turned back to look at the paperwork piled on her desk. She opened a drawer, but instead of pulling out a pen, she pulled out a small sign. Placing it in the stack, she grinned, and left her office.

Fourty-five minutes later, Shizune wandered in, checking up on Tsunade's progress on the paper work. Spotting the sign, she went to inspect it.

_Gone for a drink. Be back soon. Or not. _

_-Tsunade_

The newest addition to the Icha Icha series was out, and Kakashi was going to be the first to get a copy. He had camped out in the street in front of the bookstore to be able to get his hands on it. He had even had Naruto bring him a bowl of ramen, so he wouldn't starve to death. Much to Naruto's dismay, it was student treat teacher night. But it was finally time for the new release, and Kakashi Hatake was ready to read. He rubbed his hands together, eagerly awaiting it's arrival. His one visible eye lit up as the bookstore man walked forward, opened the door, and then took notice of the white haired ninja.

"Hello, Kakashi! I'm sorry, but the shipment of the Icha Icha Paradise books didn't come. It turns out the author had to catch up on some research, and didn't get it in on time. I'll keep you informed on when it does come, though!" The man smiled, pushed the door to the store open, and turned on a light, leaving the poor ninja all by himself on the street. Or, almost all by himself.

"Day one, 714 hours. My internal rival Kakashi gets disappointed at bookstore. It seems that the bookstore man has defeated him this time. Must get tips once mission is over on how to do so." A green clad ninja wearing a poofy afro and a mustache stood next to a vendor selling apples. He was holding a small recording device, and talking into it. Kakashi walked away from the store, with Gai following. They walked past a distressed Hyuuga, and his friend.

"LEE. I have told you, I am not using my Byakugan to help you find Sasuke. Especially since I don't think he is in there..."

"But Neji! I will never be able to find the youthful Uchiha boy in time if you do not help! And we need to check every building to find him!"

"Lee, I said no." Neji's eye started to twitch as a stress mark appeared on his forehead.

"Why not, Neji?"

"That is a womans bath house."

"Oh. I DO NOT WISH YOU TO DEFILE YOUR YOUTH WITH SUCH THINGS! THE NEXT BUILDING, THEN!" The small flame had returned to Lee's eye as he pointed to the next building. Neji stood silently, not moving, arms crossed. Lee trudged away without him, not noticing his teammate had stayed behind.

A young, pink haired kunoichi walked out of the doors of the next builing. Lee barreled into her, not having noticed her exit. "Oh, hello Lee!" Sakura smiled, and started picking up her groceries. As she did so, she hummed a very pretty tune.

"Sakura-chan! Have you seen Sasuke as of late?" Lee bent down to help her pick the groceries off the ground. By the food she had bought, it seemed as though she would be cooking dinner for two people. _'It must be her parents anniversary!'_ Lee thought to himself, completely ignoring the obvious answer.

"No, I haven't. But Naruto is right behind you, maybe he could help." Sakura was too happy to really be paying attention. She glided down the street, happily humming. Tonight, she was going to invite Shikamaru over to her house. It would be so romantic. There would be candles, flowers, and small, singing, flying cupids fluttering over their heads as the looked into each others eyes, and he told her that he never wanted to be with anyone else. Just like that fantasy romance novel she had read last night! Sakurra sighed a happy, dreamy sigh, and walked into an opened door.

"Research... I'LL SHOW HIM RESEARCH!" Kakashi stepped through the door in which his student had just walked into. "Hn? What's this?" He looked behind the door, revealing Sakura. She was rubbing her forehead, still humming. She smiled at Kakashi.

"Kakashi-sensi! How nice to see you!"

"1032 hours. Kakashi walked through door, potentially harming student, Sakura Haruno. 1033 hours, student responds.Kakashi seems to have won this round, but Sakura will be back." Gai was now disguised as a hat stand, with a mask on.

Both Kakashi and Sakura were still talking, oblivious to the fact there was a talking hat stand with a mask on behind them.

"I'm very sorry about Jiraiya being a pervert, Kakashi-sensi. I hope your book comes soon!" Sakura cheerfully picked up her battered bag of groceries, and moved on, still humming.

"1035 hours, Sakura leaves, humbly defeated."

Kakashi, still ignore Gai, watched as his student left. "She seems overly happy... This can't be good." He walked down the road, passing Rock Lee and Naruto on his way.

"One of the benefits of helping me is that you get to wear this awesome suit!" Naruto's eyes lit up as Lee pulled out a green spandex suit. "With this, your agility will increase 10! And we'll catch Sasuke in no time!" Naruto was hanging on Lee's every word. His eyes were big and shining, and he took the suit from Lee's hands.

"I'LL DO IT!"

"LET US RUN INTO THE SUNSET, O YOUTHFUL NARUTO!" Lee started running off, the fire in his eyes again. Naruto stood behind, scratching his head.

"Aren't we supposed to be going after Sasuke?"

"Oh, yes." Lee turned, and ran back to Naruto. "OFF TO FIND SASUKE!"

"Isn't Neji coming? He looks kind of stupid standing there all alone." Naruto, now dressed in the green spandex himself, and was looking at the smug Hyuuga. Neji still had his eyes closed, and he was smirking.

"Well, he did not want to come with us."

"Oh..." Naruto's eyes lit up with a devilish light as he thought of a hilarious prank to pull. Calling Lee over, he whispered it into his ear.

"But Naruto, do you really think this will work? This is Neji, you know."

"AHA! Like Neji could ever beat a genius like myself." Lee shrugged, and agreed to help. A couple minutes later, Lee was standing in the street by himself. He walked up to Neji, and poked him.

"What, Lee."

"Are you not going to help, Neji?"

"I've already said--..." But before he could finish telling Lee off, Narto came up behind him and knocked him out. Before he went completely unconcious, he made a note to himself. _Always leave Byakugan on._

Ten minutes later, Neji woke up. Lee and Naruto, both dressed in green spandex were crowded around him. He looked up at them, a confused look on his face. "Good, you're awake! Now you can help us!" Naruto exclaimed.

"What makes you think I'll help you?" came Neji's response.

"If you don't, you don't get your regular clothes back." Naruto grinned at his own genius plan as Neji looked at what he was wearing.

''NO! GET IT OFF ME!'' Neji jumped up, and pulled at the sleeves. He was wearing a green spandex suit. And he hated it.

"LET US GO, NEJI!" Lee took off running.

"LEE, GIVE ME MY CLOTHES!" Neji started running after him. Naruto, not wanting to be left out, followed suit.

They ran down the streets of Konoha, jumping onto buildings at random times, trying to find their target. For Lee, it was Sasuke. For Neji, it was Lee. And for Naruto, it was to see how this would end up. As the trio landed in the street again, only to pass Kakashi.

"Hello, Kakashi-sensi."

"Oh, hello Naruto." Kakashi waved and walked down the street. Gai was now disguised as a very big, ugly cat.

"325 hours. Rival passes another student as the beautiful green beast of Konoha goes by. LEE!"

"GAI-SENSI!" Came the reply from a distance. Kakashi and Gai walked down the street. This was their third time walking past the bookstore. There was still no sign of the book.

"326 hours. Kakashi defeated again." They both slowly made their way up the street, moving past the Haruno household. Gai sniffed the air, and an aroma of smells entered his nostrils. It smelled delicious. _That Sakura girl would make a perfect match for my Lee! I'll forgive the fact that she is Kakashi's student if she cooks like that every meal._ But Gai could not stay for long, Kakashi was on the move again.

Inside the house, Sakura busily prepared the food for tonight's meal. She was very excited, and kept reading the recipies wrong. "A dash of pickled chickens feet... But I don't have chickens feet." Confused, she glanced down at the cookbook again. "OH! A dash of pepper on the chicken meat!" A couple of hours later, Sakura was still working hard in the kitchen.

"I hope this tastes alright," She said, as she added in another ingrediant.

Outside of her kitchen window, Ino and Sasuke were formulating a plan. "I'll hit her with my jutsu when they try to kiss. I'll tell him that it was nice, but I've got another man. And that's when you come in and we kiss. Got that?" Ino said to Sasuke in her bossiest voice.

"I do what now?" Sasuke asked, having not really payed attention. He was starved, as Ino had pulled him away from his lunch. He sniffed the air. It smelled so good.

"AGH! You just come in when I say I've got another man. Okay?"

"Alright." Sasuke wanted to walk right into the kitchen and eat everything in sight. His stomacj growled.

"Meet back here at 7 o'clock." Sasuke nodded, and they went their separate ways.

Seven o'clock rolled around fast for Sakura. She had just finished her hair by the time the bell rang. She glanced out her bathroom window, and saw Neji in a spandex suit chasing Lee. "I wonder what they're doing..." Remembering her date, she hurried down the stairs. "Coming!" She came to a halt in front of her door, flattened her hair a bit, and answered it. Standing the the door way was Shikamaru, looking more handsome than ever.

"Hey, Sakura." He said, flashing her one of his white toothed smiles. She invited him in, and he handed her a box of chocolates with caramel filling - Her favorite.

She smiled at him, and gave him a huge hug in response. She lead him to the table were they would be eating dinner. There were candles, of course, that were lit for the centerpiece. They both sat on opposite sides of each other, and Shikamaru sat closest to the window. Outside of the window, in a tree, sat Ino and Sasuke.

"Did you eat, Sasuke?" Ino asked, wanting to make sure her accomplice was ready.

"Yep. It was delicious." He turned his attention to the couple sitting inside. He waited for them to finished their meal.

And waited.

And waited.

And waited. Until they stopped eating, and started talking. It took them a while to start in for the kiss. If it had been Sasuke, he'd have been all over Sakura before they had even started eating.

"Okay, I'm going in." Ino preformed her handseals, mumbled something, and then fell faint. She had placed herself so she would lean up against the tree.

When Ino opened her eyes, she didn't see Shikamaru's black, spiky hair.

She saw Sakura's pink, straight hair. _Uh-oh..._

And then their lips met.

**A/N: WHAT CAN THIS MEAN? Sakura and Ino kissed? Uh-oh is right...**


	9. Sasuke's Agony

**A/N: New chapter! n.n I know, it's been too long since I've updated! But I wanted to give my other stories updates, too. I've decided to set a goal for my story! I won't update until I reach 6200 hits for the story (About 500 more), 400 hits for the chapter, or 75 comments. I'm evil.  
**

** ALSO! I want to take a vote. In the review, tell me who you want Shikamaru and Sakura to end up with? Should it be each other, or Sasuke and Ino?  
**

**Disclaimer: You know the drill.**

It seemed like forever that Ino and Sakura stood there. In Shikamaru's mind, Ino screamed frantically. This was not part of the plan. She was going to have to get out. But what about Sasuke? He was going to burst in any moment and--

Ino's thoughts were interrupted by a small hand on Shikamaru's face. It then moved up to his hair. Ino gasped, in tun opening Shikamaru's mouth. Sakura pulled back, a wide smile on her face.

"Wow, Shikamaru. I never knew you were such a good kisser!" Sakura's cheeks were a light shade of pink. Then, the unthinkable happened. She closed in for another kiss. Her face moved closer and closer to Shikamaru's. Ino wanted to reach out and push her away. She moved her hands, but instead of pushing her away, Ino caught Sakura right around the waist.

With a twitch of her mental eye, Ino thought, 'When did she get so skinny?' Ino opened her mouth to make a rude comment, but right as she opened her mouth...

"INO! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" Sasuke burst in the door, glaring at Sakura. "The plan was to--"

"Ino? PLAN?" Sakura turned her angry green eyes on the newcomer. She glared at Sasuke and pulled on her black gloves. "What is that supposed to mean, Sasuke-kun?" A psychotic smiled erupted on her face. Sasuke backed away, looking from Sakura to Shikamaru. He had a confused expression not usually found on the face of the Uchiha.

"You're not Ino..." He responded dumbly. He glanced over at Shikamaru. From Sasuke's point of view, it looked like he wanted to make a dent in his forehead with his palm. It then dawned on Sasuke.

"You're Ino!" He said, pointing at Shikamaru. This was confirmed by a large slashing motion in the air by the latter, trying to get Sasuke to shut up. But Sakura turned just in time to see one of the large x-motions. Sakura made her way over to Ino, and smacked her hard in the cheek. It hurt terribly. And the superhuman strength wasn't helping.

The angry green eyes were to creepy to bare for Ino. "Dispel!" Shikamaru yelled, making the hand motion. In less than a minute, Ino's soul was back in her body, and she was running as fast as possible away from the house. Shikamaru's head raised after being slumped over.

"Ugh... My face..." He gingerly rubbed the place on his face where Sakura had slapped him. Hand still on cheek, he glanced over at Sakura and Sasuke. With a look of horror on his face, Shikamaru's brain quickly came up with a solution.

"Ino and Sasuke came to break us up, and Ino took over the wrong body. Now she has fled, and Sasuke wants to leave. But our love will conquer all. That's what happened, right?"

But only in perfect world could that happen. "Sakura, are we breaking up?"

Instead of answering, Sakura walked up to him, and kissed him on the cheek. The cheek that she has previously hit Ino. She backed away with a smile. "What do you think, dummy?"

While Shikamaru and Sakura were having their mushy moment, Sasuke quickly fled. He ran like he never had before, and was hit by Lee. Lee's foot hit him square in the back of the head, causing Sasuke to fall on his face. He then felt to pair of feet trample over him, followed by Naruto's voice ringing out through the night.

"SASUKE! I WILL DEFEAT YOU! LATER!"

Sasuke groaned, and lay like that for a long time.

The next day, Sasuke awoke to the loud screaming of fangirls. He was lying face up, and he wasn't in the street anymore. He was in a very large house, by the looks of it. He tried moving his left arm, but it wouldn't budge. He glanced over at it. It was strapped down, as were his other arm and two legs. There was also a strap around his stomach and neck. He was strapped to a very large, round table type thing.

"5 dollars to see the great Uchiha for two minutes! Sasuke Uchiha, the one and only, right here, right now! Limited time offer! He can't run away! 10 dollars to touch him. 50 to kiss him!"

Sasuke's eye twitched. That was Shizune's voice. Tsunade was trying to make money of of him. The fangirls crowded around, oogling him. There were ANBU guards there, holding the people without the touching passes back.

One girl came up with a pink pass instead of the normal yellow pass. He could plainly read the word KISS on it. That could only mean one thing...

'Oh shit. Oh crap. God, save me! Naruto! Anyone?!'

The girl walked up to him, her lips curving out. Sasuke tried to pull away. She came closer, and closer. In an act of desperation, Sasuke knocked himself out with a bang on the back of his head.

At that moment, Sakura and Shikamaru walked by, laughing abut something. They had just got back from lunch at the ramen stand. Shizune waved Sakura over.

"Sakura-chan, could you please save Sasuke-san? I think Tsunade-sama is taking a little too much liberty to pay off her debts." Sakura sighed.

"What did she do this time?"

"Well, she's selling tickets to people. I don't know much else, but it doesn't sound good. I would go in, but then the money would be left unguarded, and we need to pay off the debts regardless of how she gets the money."

Sakura threw a cautionary glance to Shikamaru. He nodded, signaling he didn't mind her rescuing Sasuke.

"Okay, I'll do it." Shizune handed Sakura a pink pass. She didn't bother to read it.

In her own mind, Shizune was laughing manically. Ever since she and Kakashi had started going out, they had been planning to get Sakura and Sasuke together. Now it would work.

Sakura walked through the crowd. Sasuke was strapped to a bullseye. "Tsunade-sensi, you've gone too far."

"STEP RIGHT UP! Ah, a yellow pass! Let her through, boys." A brown haired girl walked up with wide eyes. She touched his face. When she pulled back her hand, she squealed.

"I'm NEVER going to wash this HAND!" She cradled it near her face. Sakura rolled her eyes. Tsunade spotted her apprentice with the pink pass. Her eyes narrowed._ Why is she here? Did she break up with Nara? God, I hope not. I don't have enough to pay Kakashi..._

"Well boys, it looks like we have a pink pass! Sakura, it's your lucky day!" A ninja came beside her, and pulled her toward the unconscious boy.

"Tsunade-sensi, just let him go." She looked at her sensi. The amber eyed women smiled.

"I wouldn't want you to waste fifty dollars, Sakura. Go ahead, you can kiss him. Then I'll left him go."

"KISS HIM?" Sakura looked down at the pass Shizune had given her. It did indeed say kiss in big, bold letters. The ninja dragged the pink haired girl toward the raven haired Uchiha. Sakura was trying frantically to pull back. What had Shizune done?

Outside, Shizune looked at the lazy ninja. "Sakura sure has been in there for a while. Maybe you should go check on her..."

"I think I will, Shizune-san." Shikamaru walked in, pushed through the crowd, and saw his worst nightmare.

He walked in right as Sakura was being forced to kiss Sasuke. The Uchiha came to just as the pink head moved toward him. His eyes widened in shock, then found their way to the bewildered Nara. He smirked inwardly. He had won, and Nara knew it.

Seeing Sasuke conscious again, Sakura pulled apart, and turned to where he was looking. She saw a green vest turn, and leave. Shikamaru...!

"SHIKAMARU!" She yelled, completely forgetting about the Uchiha behind her. All he could do was smirk.

Shikamaru stalked out of the building, head angled so there was a shadow over his eyes. Shizune grinned to herself: Her plan had worked. But the grin was soon replaced by a fake shocked face.

"Shikamaru-kun?" He just brushed past her. A few minutes later, Sakura ran out. The pink haired girl was flushed, and had a worried look in her eye. "He went that way, Sakura-chan." She pointed to the retreating back of the Nara.

As Sakura ran after him, Kakashi appeared.

"Good work, Shizune. I like your style. Pick you up at 8, okay?" Shizune nodded, and Kakashi disappeared.

"I have a date tonight! It's all thanks to you, Sakura-chan." The woman then returned to advertising the Uchiha for Tsunade-sama.

**A/N: Shizune and Kakashi, on a date? Shikamaru upset at Sakura? Sasuke strapped to a bullseye for money (Not in that way, perverts! Dx)? What will happen next?**

**Review, please! It'll get you a new chapter faster! **


	10. Team Shikamaru

A/N: As promised for my 75th review, a new chapter is up! Yes! It would have been up earlier, but Fan fiction didn't want me to upload any documents for about a week. But, it is now, so I'm giving you all an update! Thanks for all the hits and reviews, everyone! I never thought I'd have this successful of a story. I love you all for being so great! Remember: More reviews gets faster updates.

Disclaimer: I wish I owned Naruto.

"Shikamaru! SHIKAMARU!" The pink haired girl chased after the retreating Nara. But it seemed that he was intent on getting rid of her, losing her somehow.

"I've screwed it all up. He's going to hate me forever." Sakura sighed, and gave up. There was no use trying to follow him. When Shikamaru wanted to get away, he could lose anyone. And Sakura had found that out the hard way.

Hearing her words, the Nara, who was disguised as a shopper on the street, frowned. 'Not forever. But it's going to take time.' His heart ached seeing her kissing Uchiha, and the sight kept replaying in his head. He just shut his eyes, and went home.

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Tsunade sat at her desk, staring down at the request on the page. She was going to need a four man cell for this mission. And she only had four chuunin left to call. What was with this influx of missions this week, anyway? Was it like bother Konoha by giving them missions week? If it was, she had been left out of the loop on that one.

The Hokage sighed, a deep long sigh. "YOU BETTER NOT BE PLANNING TO GO TO SLEEP, HOKAGE-SAMA!" Shizune's voice blared in her ears from the next room.

"I'M NOT!"

The black haired assistant walked in, huge stack of papers in hand. "Good, because you've got a lot of paperwork to be doing."

A pair of amber eyes started twitching nervously at the sight. So. Many. Papers.

"Right, I'll get to that right after you call in these four for this mission." Glad that her boss was finally going to get some work done, Shizune happily took the mission report. "You're going to have to brief them, since I've got all this paperwork to do." Her assistant nodded again. If it meant Tsunade-sama was going to get work done, she'd brief all the teams.

When she saw Shizune leave the Manor, Tsunade made a run for her life. She barged through the door, out onto the street, and ran far far away. It seemed as though Shizune was just too naive.

The black haired woman knocked on the door of her fellow apprentice. "Sakura-chan, you are needed for a mission."

"Coming, Shizune-san!"

"Actually, meet me up at the gates in 10 minutes. I need to go get everyone else."

"Hai!" Was the response.

Shizune continued her search for the three meaning chuunin on the list. She came up to the next door. Knocking, the blond girl opened the door. "Ino-chan! You're needed for a mission!"

"Right, Shizune-san."

"Meet me up at the gate for the briefing in 10 minutes. I need to go get your team mates."

"Okie-dokie." Ino smiled, and shut the door. Shizune continued on her way. The next house came into view. She had to wonder why they all lived so close to each other. It was taking her like less than a second to get from place to place. Weird.

She knocked politely on the door. "Lee-kun, you're needed for a mission." The black haired boy opened the door, fully dressed and backpack on. "Wow... that was quick."

"Hai, Shizune-san! I like to challenge myself by trying to get ready as quickly as possible."

"Well, that was pretty quick. Um, meet me by the gate in about 10 minutes, okay?"

"Right! I'll be there in ten minutes, after finishing my 10 laps around Konoha!"

"Right... Well, bye, Lee-kun!" She smiled, and slowly inched away from the door, heading for the next person on her list. Who was the last person on her list, anyway? She looked down. There were tons of pen lines all crossed out over the page. Tsunade-sama had done some serious thinking on this!

Shizune smiled, and then realized Tsunade had been playing tic-tac-toe with herself to pass the time she should have been working. Shizune's eye was sent into a furry of twitching.

"Shizune, are you okay?"

The voice calling to her made her turn around. Standing behind her was none other than Shikamaru Nara. "Ah, Shikamaru-kun! Perfect. I need you to lead a team for me, okay? I was actually heading out to your house to find you, but it's a good thing you're here. We've got to get to the gate quickly!" Compared to the rest of them, the Nara household was way out there. While it had taken her the blink of an eye to get from Sakura's to Ino's to Lee's houses, it had taken her nine just to find the chuunin standing before her.

"But, I didn't have time to pack anything."

"Oh well, I'm sure someone will have over packed. You know how girls are!"

Yeah, right. He had never known anyone other than Ino and Naruto to over pack for a mission.

When they arrived at the gate, Sakura, Ino, and Lee were already there.

"How troublesome..." was all Shikamaru muttered. He had been avoiding both Sakura and Ino for a couple of days, ever since the kiss.

"You all are going on a mission to Takigakure to retrieve some information on mysterious happenings there. Tsunade-sama also wants you to get some money that a ninja there owed her. She doesn't have many people in debt to her, so she's charging outrageous interest. The ninja's name is Jiraiya-sama."

"Why does Jiraiya-sama owe Tsunade-sama money?" Sakura asked.

Ignoring the question, Shizune continued. "Shikamaru-kun, you're the leader. Well, that about sums it up. Bye!"

With a shake of his head, Shikamaru looked up at the sky. What he wouldn't give to be watching the clouds in a field somewhere. If he had known being a chuunin was this much work, he would have given it up a long time ago.

"Well, lets get going." And he took off in the direction of Takigakure, his team following behind.

After two hours of Ino talking, Shikamaru turned to Ino with an exasperated look on his face. "Ino. Shut. Up."

"Awww, but Shikamaru-kun!"

"Yes, Shikamau-kun! I think Ino's voice is quite youthful!

"No one asked you, Lee."

"You're just jealous your voice isn't youthful, Shikamaru!"

"My voice could be youthful if it wanted to. But my ears, on the other hand, can't take much more." Shikamaru couldn't help but notice that Sakura hadn't said a thing on this mission. He knew it was his fault, and he felt really bad about it, but he felt even worse every-time he saw her kissing Sasuke in his mind.

Why do I even care? I don't love her. She can do whatever she wants to. The only reason I liked her is because we spent so much time together to try and break up Ino and Sasuke.

But long after they were broken up, you still hung out. And you really enjoyed it.

Nyaa, just shut up. Sakura doesn't like me, she likes Uchiha.

Oh? Is that why you two had so mcuh fun together? Is that why you would think of her even when you were apart? Is that only you could make her smile when she was sad?

I did not!

Don't try lying to your mind. It doesn't work.

Shikamaru shook his head. He really needed to stop talking to himself, it was starting to get creepy. Really creepy.

"Shikamaru-kun, we're there."

And it was taking longer to argue with himself every time.

"Right. Well, you know the mission. Lee and Ino will look for Jiraiya. Once you find him, Ino, take over his mind, and give Lee the 1,000 yen owed. Sakura and I will try to gather as much information as possible on these mysteries."

"Okay, Shikamaru." Ino jumped down onto the ground, and ran to the gates.

"Hai, Shikamaru-kun." Lee nodded, and followed Ino.

Sakura said nothing. She just looked at him with sad eyes.

"Sakura..."

"No, it's okay. I'll get over it." Eventually.

Shikamaru didn't want her to get over it, though. He wanted her to love him. But... that would never happen. He had blown it by ignoring her.

Sakura didn't want to get over it. But she new she had blwn it by kissing Sasuke. Having Shikamaru ignore her was a dead give-away that he didn't want her anymore.

The two looked away nervously. Then Shikamaru spoke.

"Well, we still have a mission to carry out."

"Right."

With that, the two set off for Kumogakure, neither wanting to make eye contact with the other. 

A/N: I bet you guys expected this. XD Read, and review. More reviews gets faster updates. Once I get 90 reviews, I'll update again. 15 more, just like last time!


	11. Forgiveness?

**A/N: So, you guys have reached my ultimatum for updating. I have decided not to push you guys to review, although you know what they say. "Updates come faster for those who review."**

**Disclaimer: You know the deal.**

Sakura's eyes visably widened at the sight of the waterfall country when the couple entered. It was a beautiful sight, and it all seemed to center around a huge waterfall at the back of the village. It was gigactic.

The village iteself was no speck of dirt, either. The streets were paved with white cement, giving the village a clean, crisp look. There were canals of water running through, with miniature waterfalls going down steps, and small fountains bubbling up. Shikamaru couldn't help but wonder how they could afford all of this decoration, especially for a village that was always needing help. It was cooler here than in Konoha, thanks to the water. There were flowers and small trees in little oasis's on the corners.

The guard at the gate just nodded and let hem through. Standing in front of them when they entered was a man with dark blue hair, and brown eyes. "You are from Konoha, are you not?"

"Yes," Sakura said, voice full of amazement. "I wouldn't mind being the representative to this village," she mumbled under her breath. Shikamaru couldn't help but to agree with her. No matter how many times he mumbled about living a simple live i Konoha, he'd love to live here with Sakura.

"Alight then, follow me." The two shinobi started after the man, following him through the crowds. They arrived at a large building, and he went inside. They followed. He led them into an room, empty of life except one woman, who sat behind a desk. "Ame-sama, the Konoha ninja are here."

The woman looked up. Shikamaru noted she didn't look much older than them. "Right. Well, if you'll excuse us, Gen, I need to talk to them alone." The man, Gen, nodded, and left. "Hello, Konoha-nin. I am the leader of this village, Yashiro Ame." Sakura and Shikamaru bowed. "Please, sit down." She pointed to two empty chairs.

The two ninja sat, all the while watching the woman. "I trust you have no idea why you're here."

"We know that there are mysterious happenings, but why we were called and the details are still unknown to us."

She looked over at the spiky haired leader. "Speaking of which, I asked the Hokage for four, and yet there are only two of you."

"The other two had were sent to track down a ninja from our village staying here."

"Ah yes, Jiraiya-oji." Sakura looked at the girl with renewed interest.

"Jiraiya is your uncle?" the pink haired girl asked.

"Yes. My mother's brother. But that's besides the point. You are here to investigate an attack made on us a few weeks ago. Our ninja are not allowed to, or the village will be attacked again, and maybe destroyed. As my village is not on good terms with most of the other villages because of things that happened before I took over, I couldn't ask anyone. But luckily Jiraiya-oji said he could contact Tsunade-san for me, while still keeping inside the village."

"We tried sending messages earlier, but all of our ninja got killed. People can come in, but not out. Especially not our own ninja. So I begged my uncle to get a few ninja from Konoha, and he agreed. I think it would be easier for Konoha ninja to get in and out, especially since the attackers don't know you know of their attacks. They have my regular office being watched, and the ninja inside, who is using a Henge no Jutsu, being watched also."

"So, I need you to help my teams investigate. I asked for the fastest ninja, the ninja with the best ability to spy, the smartest, and the best medic. Tsunade said she couldn't promise all of that for what I could pay, but she could send her best chuunin that fit my requirements. I am hoping you all are the ones?"

"I guess we are, Ame-sama," Sakura replied.

"Yeah, Sakura here is the second best medic in our village." Sakura blushed at his comment. For some reason, hearing those words come out of his mouth made them sound so much better. "And Lee's so fast, all you can see is a blur when he gets going."

Ame noticed the small blush on the pink haired girls cheeks. "And our other teammate, Ino, has an ability that makes it easy to spy," Shikamaru finished.

"Ah, then what are you?"

"I'm the lazy good for nothing captain, that is just here to make sure that everyone else does their job," the Nara explained. Ame nodded. Sakura, however, didn't.

"Shikamaru is one of the smartest strategists in our village, and also one of the most handsome," that last bit escaped before Sakura could say anything. She clapped a hand over her mouth, and her whole face turned red. She looked out one of the small windows, trying not to let Shikamaru see her face.

_Aw shit... I didn't actually say that, did I?_

_**CHA!**_ Inner Sakura yelled, pumping her fists into the air. _**He's hot and you know it, Sakura!**_

Regaining her composure, she turned back to see Shikamaru's race slightly red, and Ame smiling. But the leader turned back to her papers, and then looked up at the two, seriousness written all over her face. "I want you to start by walking through the village, looking for two people of these descriptions." She slid two files toward them. Shikamaru and Sakura looked them over. "These two were in the attacking party. Neither was killed, but we know they are here somewhere. Where, though, we have no idea."

One was a man, with short golden hair and silver eyes. He was supposed to be about 24 years old, with a scar on his left cheek. He had the middle finger on one hand cut off. He was shorter than Shikamaru. He was dangerous, according to the sheet of what he had done. It had a list of where he has been spotted in the past month. Shikamaru studied it. It seemed as though no one was able to stop him, not even some of the higher ranks of the village. Uh-oh...

Sakura's folder contained information of a woman with long purple hair. She had one blue eye, and one hazel-orange eye. Other than that, she was relatively normal. According to the sheet, she was a former Takigakure ninja. She also seemed to be taller than the man. She didn't seem to be really harmful; no killings were recorded under her name. She also seemed not to fight when the other ninja attacked, leaving it up to her partner.

"Any questions?" Ame asked, looking at the couple.

Sakura was the first to speak. "It says here that this woman was a former ninja of Takigakure. Why no name?"

"We don't know it."

"And you can't check your records?" The woman shook her head.

"We can't find anyone with her description in our records."

"Then how do you know she is from here?"

"She has one of the special jonin headbands, issued a few years back to some of our elite ninja. These are kept under guard, however." While Sakura and Ame talked, Shikamaru stared down at the file. Something was bugging him.

"Why did you want Konoha ninja, especially if your own couldn't handle it?" He spoke abruptly, interrupting their conversation. Ame looked at him in surprise.

"Well, Konoha is rumored to have the strongest shinobi. And they always boas about it, making other countries seem inadequate. I figured you would be able to help."

Shikamaru folded his arms, and leaned back in his chair. Stupid reputation...

"And, if you couldn't afford to pay for Jonin, then how can your village look so... expensive?" Sakura voiced the question that floated around in Shikamaru's head when he entered the village.

Ame flushed. "Our village used to be very great. There were tons of people who used to come to see the grandeur of the waterfall. There was tons of money coming in. But soon, the people stopped coming when my predecessor started attacking the other villages and the civilians for feudal lords and organizations. Our customers were so appalled, they stopped coming." She wasn't looking at them anymore, and Sakura could tell she wasn't proud of it.

"It's okay, Ame-san! We'll get these attackers, and help your village," Sakura grinned, and gave Ame the nice guy, or rather, nice girl pose.

Ame smiled, and dismissed them. Shikammaru and Sakura left the building. A few blocks away, Shikamaru grabbed Sakura's hand. "I could tell from your question you were thinking he same thing as me."

"Contacts?"

"And a fake scar."

"That would explain why they couldn't find any records of the girl."

"And how the guy gets around with no one finding them."

"Right. We'll start our search, then."

"Okay," Shikamaru responded as he started to walk down the street.

"Oh, and Shikamaru..." Sakura said, her face turning pink.

"Yeah?" He asked, without turning around.

"You really are the hottest ninja in the village," Sakura stated, turning away from him. She was embarrassed by her streak of boldness.

"I dunno, there seems to be one that's better looking than me," he said, a smug smirk on his face.

"Who?" Sakura turned, clearly confused.

"You know, for a genius, you can sure be dumb sometimes." Sakura recognized the line she had used on Shikamaru when they had started this plan.

When realization finally dawned on her, she grinned, and blushed a bit.

"I'm flattered."

"You should be," Shikamaru retorted, grin in tow. She gave him a playful shrug.

As they walked down the street together, searching for their targets, Ino and Rock Lee watched on.

"They're so cute together. I guess I was wrong about Sakura; she really does love him."

"And Shikamaru loves her back."

"Should we go help them?"

"Let us give them an hour for themselves. Then we will consult them. They need some time alone, no?"

"That they do, Lee. That they do."

**A/N: It took a week and Sakura submitting to Inner Sakura for Shikamaru to forgiver her, and admit he loves her. In his own Shikamaru-y way. Remember to review! **


	12. Kunai and Chakra

**A/N: I just like starting out my chapters with authors notes. You know you all love it, too. Okay, new chapter! Sorry I haven't updated in so long... .. I've been having major idea block with this story, but I've got it all planed out now. It's will be coming to an end soon, sadly enough! Oh, and thanks for the reviews! having 100 reviews for a story is just amazing. 3 Please read and review!**

** I have disclaimed that I own Naruto or any of the characters that are apart of that manga/anime before, but I feel I need to do it again.**

**ENJOY! **

His eyes darted from place to place, searching for any sign of the mysterious couple.

"Sakura, have you found anything yet?" He whispered into the mike attached to his neck.

On the other side of the village, the pink haired kunoichi shook her head. "Nope. Lee?"

Lee was stationed at the front gate. "I do not. Ino-chan?"

Ino was stationed on the opposite side of the village from Lee. "Nope. No one here. I take it you haven't either, Shikamaru?"

"No one suspicious. But these are ninja; I didn't expect them to be in plain sight." He wished Tsunade had assigned him a Byakugan user, as they would make things so much faster. He looked up, barely able to see Ino's shining hair to his right. "Okay, I have an idea."

"FINALLY! Sakura's idea has so far sucked!" Ino loudly complained.

"Actually, Ino, her idea of scouting the area was what led up to this," the lazy shadow user stated.

"Yeah, Ino-pig!" Sakura's voice rang in his ears.

_'How troublesome...'_

"Okay, here's the plan." Shikamaru spoke quietly into the microphone, making sure no one around him would hear. Sakura had the ear-piece pushed into hear ear, trying to hear what he was saying. Ino listened intently. Lee nodded the whole time, not missing a word.

A few minutes later, they met in the middle of the village. Lee was running at top speed, and bowled Ino over.

It took all Sakura and Shikamaru had to keep themselves from laughing at the sight of Ino, staring up at the sky.

"Mommy, I want a cookie! Please?" she called out. Sakura couldn't stifle her laughter any longer.

"I think she has a concussion," Shikamaru said as Ino stood up and started dancing.

"Either that, or the crazy is finally getting out," Sakura said inbetween fits of laughter. Shikamaru gave her a quick smile. "But I should probably check her out before she tries to eat that pole over there." Ino was now furiously biting the pole.

"I WANT MY COOKIE, DAMNIT!" Shikamaru shook his head yet again. Sakura made her way over to Ino, and with Lee's help, tackled her to the ground.

Sakura examined her bleeding head. "You hit her hard, Lee. I'm surprised that she's not unconscious." A few hand seals made her hands become a green color, and she ran it over the wound on Ino's head. After ten or fifteen minutes, the bleeding had stopped.

"Ino?" Shikamaru cautiously stated, looking down at the blond who had finally shut up.

Sakura flipped her back over, and her light blue eyes slowly opened. "Huh? My head feels funny..." She rubbed the back of head tenderly, and looked around from Sakura to Lee to Shikamaru.

"Nyah, how troublesome. It looks like Ino isn't prepared for a fight. Sakura, you and I will have to go..." Sakura nodded her head at Shikamaru's words. Ino looked between them.

"Oh no, billboard brow. Your not going with my Shikamaru-kun." Ino glared daggers at Sakura, who looked at her with a smile.

"I'm still not your Shikamaru, Ino," Shikamaru said with a quick roll of his eyes. "Right, so our plan has to be changed. Meet back here in two hours."

"But then it will be dark," Lee said, looking over at the sun, which was low in the sky. Shikamaru nodded.

"Exactly. Try to leave at night, when there are less people and more cover. Something Asuma-sensei said to us." He looked around at his four teammates. "That means Lee and Ino will be backup, instead of Sakura and I." If there really were ninja watching the entrance, waiting for someone to leave, then that's what Shikamaru would give them.

And there would probably be extra eyes at night if they were intent on making sure no ninja got out.

The four man cell went out for dinner, as they had nothing better to do.

"How was the mission with Jiraiya, anyway?" Sakura asked, looking at Ino and Lee.

"He was surprised to see us, that's for sure. When Lee asked him about the money, he tried to run for it. Little did he know that Lee cold out run him any day," Ino said as she picked at her salad. She had ordered fat free dressing and everything.

"Ino-chan, why do you starve yourself with such fat free foods?" Lee asked, eating his own meal. It consisted of a plate of curry, and a water.

Ino rolled her eyes. "I don't want to end up like Choji. Guys like their girls _thin_."

Shikamaru gave her a look. "To start off, not all guys like their girls thin. And Choji's not bad; he's lost weight because of you."

"I know, it's good that he's taking my advice."

"I like girls with a little youthfulness on their bones," Lee added thoughtfully.

"Right..." said the blond, as she looked over at Lee with an odd expression on her face.

Shikamaru glanced up at the clock. They had been in the restaurant for a while, it was time for them to leave. "Come on, everyone. Plan Nightdrop awaits."

"Plan Nightdrop? That's what we're calling it? It makes no sense," Sakura said with a joking looking at Shikamaru.

"Eh, stop being so troublesome. We need to get out, and we need to get out soon," Shikamaru stated rather loudly.

A waitress hid out of sight, hearing every word. She grinned evily, and walked back to the kitchen. She opened a drawer, and took out a small mike that ninja used to transmit messages to each other. "You were right, Toji-kun. They're going to try to leave tonight, very soon."

"They won't get past us. We'll stop them from further alerting Konoha about our plans." On the other end of the conversation was a man with blond hair and silver eyes.

Shikamaru, Sakura, Ino, and Lee left the restaurant, and headed out the door. "Alright. You two are to stay back here, and wait for the signal. Either Sakura or I will set if off in case of trouble. If everything goes as planned, we'll get them tonight." His team nodded, and Lee and Ino stayed behind as Sakura and Shikamaru walked toward the gate.

The sun was down, letting the couple make their way out without being seen. The guard let them through, against his better judgment. The two hurried out of the gate, and took off in the direction of Konoha.

A shruiken flew at Sakura, causing her to stop. Shikamaru stopped, and stayed by her side.

"Don't think you're leaving us so soon, Konoha scum." A male voice broke the peaceful silence.

"We've only just started playing with this pitiful village; we can't have the Leaf Village ruining it." A female voice soon followed.

"Oh darn, we've been found out." Sakura said, grinning.

The grin disappeared as a fog covered the land around them. They could only see each other; everything else was blocked out.

Then a million shuriken came out of now where. "Dispel!" They both yelled.

"Aw, they figured out it was a genjutsu." The female voice spoke again, this time in an amused tone.

"And a poor one at that!" Sakura yelled. She was trying to figure out the position of the other ninja.

"You little bitch!" The female came flying out of nowhere, heading straight toward Sakura. The pink haired kunoichi slammed a fist into her face, making the clone poof away. Sakura looked around for any sign of movement.

There was none. Sakura let a sigh escape. "This is no--"

"Watch out!" Her attention was soon turned to the large kunai with the exploding tag coming straight toward her. There was no time to react!

Sakura prepared for the hit that did not come. She turned her head to see a green vest attached to spiky black hair in front of her, kunai tip pointing peeking out of his back.

Her eyes grew wide. He fell back onto her as two more kunai pierced his arms. "Send the signal!" He said. Two kuani came from behind, whizzing through the air their heads would have been if Shikamaru hadn't fallen backwards to push her down. "I'll take care of them. Send the signal!"

"You're injured..."

"Sakura, trust me." He stood up, and pulled out the kuani in his arms. He left the one in his stomach in to keep bleeding to a minimum. There was blood covering them. She opened her mouth to say something, but he frowned. "Look, we need them! Send the signal, now!"

She nodded, tears in her eyes.

"Come one out, cowards!" Shikamaru yelled.

"Aw, he's trying to play the hero! How cute!" The female seemed to be the only one talking now. Shikamaru threw a kunai to where he the voice came from. A scream soon followed.

His arms hurt badly, but he need to protect Sakura.

He saw the blue sparks fly upward; the signal was sent.

Sakura rushed back over to the fight. Shikamaru was holding off both of the enemy ninja. A kunai was in the girls shoulder, and the male had bruises all over his face.

The pink haired ninja rushed over to his side.

"The baby is back," the male said through gritted teeth. He hadn't been expecting the pineapple-headed one to be so strong. Sakura's anger flared, and she aimed a super kick at the girls leg.

She heard a shattering of the knee bone as the woman crumpled. She aimed another at the girls face, which was again not dodged.

The woman was sent flying into a tree. The blond male turned, and ran to the tree. "Get up! She didn't injure you that bad!" He snarled angrily at the girl.

"She's... strong..." was the reply. The violet haired woman fell from the tree onto the ground, not able to move.

Shikamaru ran up to the male, and spun him around. "You're my opponent!" At that moment, the male made a handsign.

The kunai Shikamaru had left exploded. The male grinned, picked his partner, and ran for it.

Sakura quickly fell to her knees. A few hand signs later, the green chakra flowed over Shikamaru's stomach. The explosion had been small, but it still did it's damage.

Shikamaru winced. "Shikamaru, Sakura! What happened!" Ino's voice broke the scilence.

"He's badly injured," came the sad reply. Sakura didn't have enough chakra to heal it all completely; they'd have to get to Konoha fast.

Ino bent over, contributing her chakra to his wound. It still wasn't enough.

After healing the wound so it wasn't a immediate death threat, Sakura stopped the flow of chakra.

"Lee, carry Shikamaru. Ino, we need to get to Konoha fast." They both nodded, and Lee bent over to pick up Shikamaru.

Sakura looked over at him, tears forming yet again in her eyes. "Shikamaru, I'm so sorry. This is all my fault."

Said ninja opened an eye, and smiled slightly. He winced in pain again.

"It's not your fault, Sakura. I wanted... to save you from... getting... hurt..."

**A/N: Review, please! Not much else to say... D: Seriously, I need to get to sleep earlier...**

**Rai**


	13. Forbidden

**A/N: For those of you that actually read this, you will know that this story is coming to an end very soon. The next chapter will be the last. Sasuke and Ino will make an appearance. Sorry for not updating sooner! I was rather disappointed with the lack of reviews for my last chapter, though. D: You guys can do better! I believe in you! **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. Read and review, please! Remember: More reviews will get faster updates.**

His breathing was becoming more and more labored. The bleeding hadn't stopped, and it didn't look like it would cease anytime soon.

They were still pretty far from Konoha.

"Lee, hold on. He needs some emergency treatment, again." Lee slowed down, and followed Sakura down to the forest floor. Her hands were ignited in green. Sakura laid one hand on his stomach, and waited.

Some of the skin repaired itself; his breathing became more regular, and the bleeding slowed down.

She knew they needed to get to Konoha soon. Both Sakura and Ino were running out of chakra, and the wound wasn't taking well to their efforts.

"Hang in there, Shikamaru. For me," Sakura squeezed his hand tightly, happy to feel a slight squeeze back. He hadn't gone unconsious yet.

His vision was getting blurry. At times, all the could see was pink, green, or blue. There was still blood seeping from his stomach, and the pain was terrible. It was becoming harder to sustain consciousness.

There were times when he felt better, but those times died away pretty quickly.

Sakura watched as Shikamaru winced in pain yet again, biting his tongue to keep from screaming. She knew it should have been her instead of him. It was her fault she was so careless. He shouldn't be suffering for her mistakes. Tears started to well up in her green eyes again. If they didn't get back soon, he was going to die.

That thought kept coming up, no matter how hard she tried to forget it.

She couldn't go on without him. His lazy attitude, his comforting warmth. Who else would do the shoping when she had to go somewhere, no matter how troublesome it was? Who else would hold her when she cried her eyes out that one of the ninja she had met died? Who else would always be there for her, no matter what?

Who else could she love?

_'I never told him I loved him. Sure, I implied it. But nothing is as strong as those words...'_

She was regretting that now.

"Sakura, Konoha is in sight!"

Her ears perked up at the mention of Konoha. They were close. He was going to make it.

And more importantly, she could tell him how she felt.

"Ino, run ahead and tell the guards to let us through quickly. Then find Tsunade-sama!"

"Right!" Ino charged ahead of them, making it to the gates and alerting the guards. By the time the rest of her team arrived, Ino had already rushed to Konoha tower. The two at the gate let Lee and Sakura in without a word, and they made their way to the hospital.

"Hokage-sama! Shikamaru is badly injured!" Tsunade's peaceful silence was broken by the loud blond. The older woman spun around in her chair, and looked at Ino.

"And?"

"Sakura cant heal him; she's almost out of chakra." Ino was panting, not taking her eyes off of the hazel ones of the Hokage.

"Right." In a flash, Ino saw the Hokage get up and briskly walk out the door. The woman headed straight for the hospital that Sakura had just taken Shikamaru to moments earlier. "Nara Shikamaru, what room is he in?" she demanded of the nurse at the front desk.

The nurse was a bit taken aback, but wasted no time in telling her. "Shikamaru is in emergency room 4, and he needs immediate attention." Without a word, Tsunade hurried off to the emergency room.

She opened to door, and consulted the nearest medic ninja. "What's his status?"

"His stomach is almost blown out, along with a few other organs. The bleeding won't stop, and we aren't sure if he will make it."

Her eyes narrowed and her stomach clenched. "He's going to make it. Mark my words." The doctor just nodded, not sure of the woman's promise. The Nara was in critical condition, after all. Tsunade might be a life saver, but she was not a miracle worker.

The busty woman walked over to Shikamaru, and made the appropriate hand-seals.

"Tsunade-sensei, I don't think that will work. I've tried..." Tsunade was surprised to hear Sakura's voice, and looked over at the pink haired ninja. She looked like she was about to pass out from lack of sleep and chakra.

She glared at the surrounding medics. "She needs to be in a hospital bed, getting rest, and you let her sit there?" The other ninja looked flustered, and just looked down at Sakura.

"I wouldn't let them separate us, Tsunade-sensei." Sakura looked at her sensei with a look of defiance, as if challenging her to make her move. Tsunade just smiled and shook her head.

She let her green palm rest on his large wound. The skin was not healing itself right.

This was not good.

"We're going to have to take more extreme measures!" Tsunade yelled as she stopped the jutsu. There was blood coming out of the Nara's mouth now, a direct reult of his body rejecting the chakra. She was worried. "You!" She bared at one of the medics just standing there. "I need you to go get a few files out of my records room. Tell Shizune that I need the purples ones. She'll know that it means." The woman nodded, and disappeared.

"Shizune-san! Tsunade-sama needs the purple files!"

The black haired woman's eyes opened wide in shock. The... purple ones? "Why?"

"Nara Shikamaru's life is in danger." Shizune frowned, and raced to the records room. She opened a cabinet marked 'Forbidden.' Tsunade had forbidden any medic ninja to use these jutsu. She was going to break her own rule to save him.

She emerged from the room, and handed the ninja the files. "I wouldn't look in those if I were you," she said, noting the girls curious look. "They are sealed by the Hokage herself, and only she and I can open them." The girl nodded, and disappeared yet again.

Appearing behind the Hokage, the files were forked over. Tsunade preformed a special seal breaker, and opened the files. Reluctantly, she started the hand signs. Her hands, instead of turning green, turned an odd pink color. She immediatley could tell that her large reserves of chakra were going to be used, for the most part, all up. She placed the pink chakra over his stomach.

Slowly, the skin started repairing itself correctly. But every so often, Shikamaru would wince in pain. There was a reason that these methods were banned.

They caused a lot of pain to the bearer of the wound, and Tsunade wasn't sure they were safe for any but the most extreme cases. And this wound was an extreme case.

Hours later, Tsunade emerged from the emergency room, wiping sweat from her face. She had done it. Nara Shikamaru was healed.

He was going to be out for at least a few days, and he wasn't going to be the same for the rest of his life. His lifespan might even be drastically reduced. Hopefully he was going to live a very, very long life.

But he was alive.

She wanted to get to her office for a nice nap. Her chakra was almost depleted, a feeling she didn't enjoy much.

They had moved him to his own hospital room. Conveniently, the room was built for two patients, so it had two beds. Sakura was allowed to stay in his room with him the entire time he was in there. She was considered a patient for the minor wounds she had sustained.

The whole time Shikamaru was in the hospital, Sakura never left his room. Most of the day, she would sit next to him is the chair beside his bed. She had moved their beds much closer, so she could be near him when they were asleep, just in case he woke up.

But Sakura hardly slept while she was in there. She would just sit in her chair for hours on end, and stare at Shikamaru's sleeping form.

On the third day of being in the hospital, Sakura laid her head on his chest. Her arms wrapped around his neck.

"I love you, Shikamaru. I know you can't hear me, but I love you so much," she said as her eyelids drooped.

She was asleep.

**A/N: I hope you liked it! I have to say, if I don't get more reviews, I'll focus on my other stories and ideas instead of finishing up. Reviews bribes. shifty eyes And bribes are fuuuuuun. **

**Love you all anyway, regardless of reviews! I just don't love to update without them...**


	14. Matchmaker

**A/N: Here it is, the long-awaited conclusion for Plan Sasuke Ino Breakup. I know, it's been a long time.Much, much too long. But trust me, I've been trying. Sorry if this chapter sounds a little strained. Inspiration has been running dry in my bones. xD I swear, Gaia eats it all. When I'm not on there, I can write my story. Anyway, here it is. I had a good time writing it, so I hope you guys like it. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of the characters mentioned here. And remember: Just because this is the last chapter doesn't mean I don't want reviews! **

Life is something that goes on, regardless of what happens. Time never stops for anyone's heartbreaks. There is always a time in someone's life where everything is shattered, and it feels as if life will end and time has stopped.

The only thing that makes these times better is someone to pick up the pieces.

"They're taking this a little fast, aren't they? I mean... they've been going out for what, a year now?" A blond haired girl stood in a royal purple bridesmaids dress. Standing next to her was a large man in a tux.

Chouji smiled as he watched the bride and groom dance happily on the floor. "Well, after Shikamaru had that near death experience, and Sakura figured out her true feelin-"

Ino sighed, quite loudly. "I know that, Chouji. They realized they loved each other, blah blah. I've heard it from everyone else, I don't need it from you, too." She sat down in a chair, and propped her head on her hand. "I swear, I'm going to be an old hag that scares little children off with her cats. Every hot guy I know is getting married to someone! Neji and Tenten, Shikamaru and Sakura, Sasuke and Hinata! I mean, come on! Everyone is taken, damnit!"

As if to justify her words for everyone being taken, a woman walked up and clung to Chouji's arm. Her purple hair was up in a bun, and she was wearing a black dress. She had a pretty smile, and her gray eyes flashed with happiness. "Chouji, they're going to play a slow song soon. I demand that I am able to have that dance," she stated in a playful tone. The larger man smiled down at his smaller counterpart.

"I would never turn you down, Mai." As they walked off, Ino grumbled something about being ignored. Sakura, being the watchful bride she was, smiled at this.

"Shikamaru, do you remember the reason we started hanging out?" she asked the handsome black haired man before her.

Shikamaru followed her gaze toward Ino, and grinned. "Yes, I do." He knew where this was going.

"I want to play matchmaker, just once more. She did help us." Green eyes met coal ones. Sakura gave him her sweetest smile.

"Sakura, was helping Chouji, Lee, Neji, _and_ Sasuke not enough for you?" She heard him mumble something about troublesome, which meant he was in.

She sealed the deal with a kiss. Both of their brains got working on some kind of plan as they continued to dance. "Okay, what did you come up with?" she asked with a mischievous grin. His plans were always so funny.

He frowned. "No, you first." Sakura let out a dejected sigh as they sat down. She had been wanting to hear his plan!

"Alright! So, I was thinking Ino and Shino..."

It was Shikamaru's turn to laugh. "Loud, extroverted Ino with quiet, introverted Shino? I think she'd drive Shino mad."

"Got any better plans, pineapple head?"

"Uzumaki Naruto." Sakura almost fell out of her seat. Naruto? Well... they are a lot alike. And Naruto wasn't seeing anyone, especially with Sakura and Hinata both taken.

She flashed Shikamaru a smile. "I see you have gotten smarter in game of love, young grasshoppah," she said in a voice mimicking a kong-fu teacher.

"I take it you like it, then?" stated her husband with a confident smirk.

The pink haired woman nodded. This is why she loved Shikamaru: She could be herself around him. She didn't have to act like a regular bride. A regular bride would be focusing on her husband. Sakura foucused on her crazy games of love.

And Shikamaru wouldn't have her any other way.

Love is funny in that respect.

Minutes passed as the wedding party became more lively. Soon, those minutes turned into an hour, and Sakura was smiling happily.

Ino and Naruto were dancing, having what looked like an interesting dicussion.

A pair of strong arms wrapped around her waist as she felt Shikamaru place his chin on her head. They both swayed slightly to the beat of the music that was being played.

"I see you have succeeded, Sakura." Shikamaru's calm voice was soft and loving. Sakura's eyes closed as she smiled.

"It seems I have, for the moment." As her green eyes opened again, she spotted Sasuke and Hinata sitting at a table, talking.

Another one of her projects, a huge success. At first, Hinata wasn't interested, at all. It took a little convincing for the Hyuuga. Surprisingly, Sasuke was more than willing to go along with her plan. But soon, they started talking, and found out that they were interested in the same things.

"It's funny. A year ago, I would have given anything to be where Hinata is now. Talking to Sasuke... actually having him interested in what I was saying. Seeing that look of happiness on his face, for just a split second, at the sight of me. Just to be in is presence was enough for me. And when Sasuke and Ino started seeing each other, I don't think I've ever been more angry. I was angry at Sasuke, for liking Ino. I was angry at Ino for going out with him. I was angry at myself for not being good enough for him. It wasn't until a few days afterward that I started to doubt my feelings for Sasuke. Then, I realized I never loved him. I just... I just needed to believe I could do something Ino couldn't."

Shikamaru smirked. "Well, you were screwed out of love. All you got was a lazy good for nothing husband."

The bride pulled away from him, hands on her hips. "And who said that I'm not just marrying you for the money?"

"I know my devilish good looks are too much for you, Sakura. No need to deny it." Sakura couldn't help but smile at his comment. He was acting so non-Shikamaru-ish tonight.

"Ah, it would be too troublesome to deny it," Sakura smirked. She loved how Shikamaru's expression turned to a scowl when she used his favorite word.

"No need to mock me, troublesome woman."

They stood in silence for a few moments, just looking at each other. Silently, Shikamaru moved next to his wife, his hand intertwined in hers. They looked out at the party around them. All the people they knew and cared about. Their friends and family. Standing there, watching them all, just felt right.

"You know what, Sakura?"

"Yeah, Shika-kun?"

"I have a realization of my own." His face was impassive, still watching as the couples danced and talked, as their friends enjoyed themselves.

"Oh. Well, that is it?"

"Plan Sasuke Ino Breakup wasn't a complete failure."

Sakura chuckled.

"I have to agree with that."

**I can't believe it's over already. I never thought that any story I wrote would garner this much attention. I've gotten more reviews and hits for this story than I could ever imagine. A silly idea has become my most popular story, and I am so proud of it. Thank you, everyone, who has stuck with this story until the end. Through all the long waits for updates, my demands for reviews, and my silly excuses. It's the readers that make writing worthwhile. I love all of you! Now I'm getting all emotional... Darn it. xD**

**Thank you, again. You guys are just so awesome! Hopefully I entertained you, and everyone liked this chapter. Andpleasepleasereview? Ehehehe...  
**

**Rai Lockhart**


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